After a two year suspension, Iceland has resumed hunting endangered fin whales. Photographs taken by undercover Greenpeace activists show a harpooned fin whale being cut up for meat, likely to be exported to Japan. Meanwhile, environmentalists are fighting whaling in … Continue reading
Category Archives: Ships
After a five year restoration, the 1841 built whaleship Charles W. Morgan is returning to the water at the Mystic Seaport Museum, tomorrow at 2 PM. The museum has set up a live web cam for those of us who … Continue reading
An Italian court has convicted five people of manslaughter related to the sinking of the cruise ship Costa Concordia in January 2012, which killed 32 passengers and crew. Each of the five agreed to plea bargains and none may serving … Continue reading
The story is dramatic. The North Korean 14,000 dwt bulk carrier Chong Chon Gang was stopped by the Panama Canal Authority. A container, believed to carry undeclared military weapons was found hidden in a cargo of bagged sugar. The Korean … Continue reading
About two years, ago we posted about two historic vessels in New York harbor, the ferry Yankee and the tanker Mary Whalen. In the space of two days, two different real estate and design publications featured articles about the grand … Continue reading
In a tragic twist, the engineer from the Dutch topsail schooner Wylde Swan is presumed to have drowned while attempting to assist the sinking Norwegian ketch Wyvern. When the Wyvern began taking on water while sailing in the Baltic in the … Continue reading
A US Navy’s X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System drone, nicknamed Salty Dog 502, successfully landed on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush at sea. The Navy press release reads, in part: “Today’s demonstration was the first time a tailless, unmanned … Continue reading
Following an out of control fire, the forward section of the container ship MOL Comfort finally sank yesterday. The ship had broken in half twenty four days ago on June 17th in the Arabian Sea, bound from Singapore to Jeddah, loaded with 4,500 … Continue reading
The gaff ketch Wyvern sank this morning while sailing in the Baltic as a Class B vessel in the Tall Ships Races 2013 from Aarhus to Helsinki. According to Sail Training International: She began taking on water earlier today at the centre … Continue reading
Two groups on opposite coasts of the United States are frantically working to save the 1895 built, SS Olympia, Admiral Dewey’s flagship in the Battle of Manila Bay and the last, just barely, surviving war ship from the Spanish-American War. The Mare … Continue reading
At the end of last October, the South Street Museum’s Waterfront Director, Captain Jonathan Boulware, and his crew of staff and volunteers scrambled to secure the museum’s historic ships, including two aged windjammers, moored on the East River, before they were … Continue reading
A new video released by the Bermuda Department of Conservation Services explores the wreckage of the British mail steamship “Caraquet” which came to grief on the island’s reefs 90 years ago. Caraquet 1864 – Bermuda Shipwrecks from Conservation Services on … Continue reading
This September, a fleet of tall ships will reenact the 1813 Battle of Put-in-Bay, Ohio, also known as the Battle of Lake Erie. The reenactment is part of the Great Lakes Tall Ships Challenge which kicks off today in Cleveland, OH through the … Continue reading
Unfortunately, the story is not that unusual. A ship owner in financial trouble and sailors find themselves abandoned on a ship, far from home, with no wages, and running out of food and fuel. This is what has happened to … Continue reading
The schooner Nina, a 70′ Burgess designed yacht built in 1928, was last heard from on June 4, when it was battling a storm off New Zealand. The yacht had sailed from Opua in the Bay of Islands bound for … Continue reading
The 70′ schooner Nina and her crew of seven have been reported missing. They sailed on May 29, from Opua in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand bound for Newcastle, Australia. They were last hear from on June 4th, 370 nautical miles west … Continue reading
Mitsui OSK Lines has announced: “President: Koichi Muto) reports the aft part of the containership MOL Comfort sank in the open sea near 14’26”N 66’26”E (water depth about 4,000m) at 16:48 JST (11:48 Dubai time) on June 27. The 8,100-teu … Continue reading
M/V Capricorn, a tug owned by Sri Lanka Shipping, is reported to have the forward section of the MOL Comfort under tow. The 8,100-teu container ship broke in two last week while under way from Singapore to Jeddah. The forward … Continue reading
I would argue that the wind is, in fact, created by the sun, so all sailing ships are also solar powered, perhaps once removed. The Turanor Planetsolar is, nevertheless, a fascinating vessel. Following her successful circumnavigation, she is now engaged … Continue reading
Mitsui O.S.K. Line has announced that “one patrol boat and three tugboats are heading to the site, and all of them are expected to arrive within June 24.” The fore and aft sections of the ship’s hull are drifting near … Continue reading