The impact of the ongoing budget crisis in Britain on the Royal Navy has been far reaching. Last week we posted about concerns that budget cuts would leave Britain with a shortage of attack submarines. Recently, it was revealed that the … Continue reading
Category Archives: Current
Update: Prince William co-piloted the Sea King helicopter which rescued two crew from the sinking Swanland. Prince William serves with RAF Valley in north Wales. The bulk carrier Swanland is reported to have sunk this morning off north Wales in heavy … Continue reading
We were saddened to learn of the death of Olga Bloom, who died on Thanksgiving Day at the age of 92. Thirty five years ago, Ms. Bloom, a violinist and violist, founded Bargemusic, a floating concert hall moored on the … Continue reading
A near record drought has lowered the water levels on the Rhine River, Europe’s most important inland maritime waterway, by five feet below average, stopping many ships and barges from trading. In several locations, river levels have fallen to one hundred year lows. To … Continue reading
The beluga whale population in Alaska’s Cook Inlet has been declining since the 1980s. Hunting by Alaska Natives killed nearly half the remaining 650 whales in only four years between 1994 and 1998. Native hunting of the belugas has since been … Continue reading
Last year, I went to the New York Boat Show, held yearly at the Javits Center in Manhattan. I found the visit to be frankly depressing. The endless rows of cookie cutter power boats, that often seemed as tall as they … Continue reading
The World War II era US Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk is scheduled to be scuttled in 2012, 16 miles off the coast of Sanibel Island, FL in the Gulf of Mexico to serve as an artificial reef. Veteran’s Memorial Reef planned off … Continue reading
A BBC camera crew has videoed a “brinicle,” a bizarre underwater “icicle of death” in Antarctica. ‘Brinicle’ ice finger of death filmed in Antarctic With timelapse cameras, specialists recorded salt water being excluded from the sea ice and sinking. The … Continue reading
The clean-up continues on the MV Rena which ran hard aground on Astrolabe Reef near Tauranga, New Zealand on October 5, 2011. The remaining oil has been pumped off and efforts are beginning to remove the container cargo from the stricken ship. Roughly forty containers have been … Continue reading
At least 75 whale skeletons, believed to be more than two millions years old, were recently unearthed in the Atacama Desert in Chile, a kilometer away from the ocean. The find is believed to be the best preserved graveyard of pre-historic whales in the world. Of … Continue reading
The Volvo Ocean 70 is the latest and greatest ocean racer. With their carbon fiber hulls, towering rigs and canting keels, they sail faster than the wind and as a class are the fastest monohulls ever built. Based on the … Continue reading
The British Tall Ship Youth Trust has published a new development plan detailing some significant changes in the organization, including the planned sale of the one remaining tall ship owned by the Trust, the Stavros S Niarchos. In September of … Continue reading
Havoc continues in the Volvo Ocean Race, an around-the-world race which bills itself as ” the world’s toughest sailing event.” Three of the six boats to attempt the first leg of the race have withdrawn. Two of the six boat fleet withdrew from … Continue reading
When the RMS Titanic sank on April 15, 1912, a number of those who died were celebrities of their day, including the American millionaires John Jacob Astor IV and Benjamin Guggenheim. Canadian railroad president Charles Melville Hays and Isidor Straus, American owner of … Continue reading
The schooner Lady Maryland is being dry docked at Chase’s Wharf in Fells Point to replace rotted sections of the stem and to refasten the hull as necessary. The docking and repairs are expected to take around four months and … Continue reading
Last month we posted that tanker charter rates were at the lowest they have been in 14 years and that the number of large tankers in lay up was approaching levels similar to those during the slump in the 1980′s. This … Continue reading
The Thames sailing barge was a remarkably efficient cargo carrier that lasted well into the 20th century before being replaced by diesel trucks. We have followed the rebuilding and the relaunching of the Thames sailing barge Cambria, which was the last British … Continue reading
The USS George HW Bush, the tenth of the Nimitz class, is the US Navy’s newest aircraft carrier. It cost $6.2 billion to build and is powered by two nuclear reactors which can develop 260,000 shaft horsepower. The carrier can … Continue reading
The Maritime Museum of San Diego brags that the Star of India is the oldest active sailing ship in the world. This weekend they demonstrated how they can make that claim. The Star of India, built at Ramsey Shipyard in … Continue reading
There have been several interesting art projects on and/or soon to be under the water around New York harbor. Late last month a Harvest Dome built of discarded umbrellas was unexpectedly shipwrecked on Riker’s Island in New York’s East River. A day … Continue reading