In 1901, the Antiythera mechanism was pulled from a Roman shipwreck. It is believed to date from approximately 90 BC. For years no one knew what to make of the strange clock-like device until advanced digital radiographs revealed that it was … Continue reading
Category Archives: Lore of the Sea
The clipper ship City of Adelaide (later HMS Carrick), the oldest surviving composite clipper ship in the world, is being made ready for her long trip home to her namesake city in Australia, from her current berth in Irvine, Scotland. Carrick … Continue reading
This is fascinating and terrifying at the same time. The US Navy is testing an electromagnetic railgun capable of hitting a target 100 miles away. Navy Electromagnetic Railgun Annihilates Targets 100 Miles Away In Six Minutes In the near future, US Navy ships … Continue reading
Slightly over two years ago we posted about the hijacking of the Ukranian ro/ro Faina by Somali pirates. The pirates were surprised to discover that the ship was loaded with arms, including 33 Russian T-72 battle tanks. The pirates claimed … Continue reading
The closest thing to a nautical movie in the theaters this season, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, doesn’t sound like it is necessarily worth the price of a ticket. Manohla Dargis begins her review in … Continue reading
In only the third time in 96 years, the Panama Canal closed yesterday due to flooding. After being shut down for ten hours it reopened early this morning. Heavy rains around the Chagres River, caused the water in Lake Gatun, a significant part … Continue reading
What I found surprising about the headline in the Mail Online was not that women would be serving on Royal Navy submarines but that they were still being called Wrens. Demonstrating my own ignorance, I thought that designation had been phased out … Continue reading
As difficult as it is to keep ships afloat, sometimes they can be devilishly hard to sink as well. At least that has been the experience of a group trying to scuttle the decommissioned HMAS Adelaide as an artificial reef and recreational diving site off the central … Continue reading
While the circumstances were completely different from those on the Carnival Splendor, the problem encountered by the cruise ship Clelia II is apparently another example of a ship’s engines being impacted by damage to electrical control systems. The Clelia II‘s … Continue reading
Ships carrying metallic ores should be the most stable ships on the ocean. These cargoes are dense and carried in low the ship. If improperly loaded, ore cargoes can indeed break a ship in half, but stability should not be an issue. Nevertheless, three ships carrying nickel ore … Continue reading
Two interesting stories of shipwrecks in the press recently – the wreck of the Titanic is being consumed by newly identified steel-munching bacteria, while scientists are discovering large numbers of well preserved shipwrecks in the dark and cold Baltic where there are 1,500 confirmed wrecks … Continue reading
Update: The three masted schooner Raw Faith is reported to now have sunk after the crew of two was rescued by the Coast Guard. __________ Two men were rescued by the Coast Guard from Raw Faith, a home-built 118′ three … Continue reading
The Original Pearl Harbor Attack Radio Emergency Broadcast from Washington DC Thanks to Dave Shirlaw on the Marine History list for pointing out the video. … Continue reading
A bit over a week ago we suggested an aircraft carrier as a holiday gift for the person who has everything. OK, we admit that was not the most useful gift suggestion. We now wish to suggest something far more practical and which also … Continue reading
Dr. Wubbo Ockles describing what he refers to as a “professional attack on the ship and maybe to me… as an attack on sustainability.” Dr. Wubbo Ockels on the Sinking of his Sailyacht Ecolution … Continue reading
The attack on the Pearl Harbor Naval Base, on Oʻahu, Hawaii by Japan on December 7th 1941 still resonates with Americans as evidenced by the literally hundreds of Pearl Harbor memorials scheduled around the country in remembrance of what President Franklin Delano Roosevelt referred to … Continue reading
For anyone in the area, sailor and author John Rousmaniere will be a guest at Mystic Seaport Museum on Thursday, December 9th for a wine and cheese reception beginning at at 5:30 p.m, followed by a presentation of sea stories beginning around 6:00 p.m. The program … Continue reading
The Boston Globe has documented the boarding of the USS Constitution by a Redcoat! During her long years of active duty, the USS Constitution, known as Old Ironsides, was never successfully boarded by enemy marines. Yet, here we see the … Continue reading
MV Golden Seas, a 74,475 DWT bulk carrier, which suffered a turbocharger failure on its main engines and was in danger of drifting onto the Aleutian Islands, has been taken under tow by the tug/supply boat Tor Viking II. The bulk carrier is … Continue reading
Mati Karmin, an Estonian sculptor, is not turning swords into plowshares, but he is turning marine mines into some rather remarkable furniture and household appliances. Karmin’s mine furniture is steampunk with a post-apocalyptic twist. On the northern coast of Estonia, especially on Naissaar … Continue reading