World’s Largest Iceberg, A23a, Eroding & Melting Rapidly as it Drifts into Warmer Water

Posted on by January 22, 2024

In 1986, a massive iceberg, more than three times larger than New York City, calved off West Antarctica’s Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf and immediately grounded on the floor of the Weddell Sea, where it remained stuck for almost four decades.

In November, the iceberg, designated A23a, broke free from the sea bottom and began drifting on the Antarctic Circumpolar Current into “iceberg alley”. Satellite images showed the berg, weighing nearly a trillion metric tonnes, drifting quickly past the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, aided by strong winds and currents.

The iceberg, which some scientists are referring to as a “megaberg,” is currently the world’s largest and among the world’s oldest icebergs. As it drifts, it is being eroded by waves and is melting in the relatively warmer waters of the Southern Ocean. The impact of the waves has carved huge arches and caves in the 400-meter-high walls of the iceberg.

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British Minehunters Collide — HMS Chiddingfold Backs Into HMS Bangor

Posted on by January 21, 2024

UK Royal Navy minehunter HMS Chiddingfold collided with HMS Bangor while maneuvering in Bahrain harbor on January 18th. No one was reported to be injured but Bangor was seriously damaged, with a large hole ripped in its fiberglass hull.

Both ships are specialist minesweeper vessels, part of the UK’s long-standing presence in the Gulf.

“We are aware of an incident concerning two minehunters alongside in Bahrain. There are no casualties as a result of this incident and it would be inappropriate to comment further whilst investigations are ongoing,” a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence told the BBC.

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Herlaugshagen, Scandinavia’s Oldest Ship Burial Mound and the Missing Ship

Posted on by January 18, 2024

A new analysis has concluded that a large, grassy hill in Norway known as the Herlaugshagen burial mound was likely the site of a pre-Viking ship burial. What is fascinating is that the site was excavated three times during the late 18th century and no one found the ship within the mound. 

The Herlaug mound, on the island of Leka in Central Norway, has a diameter of over 60 meters and is one of the largest burial mounds in the country. In the prior excavations, artifacts were discovered including a kind of wall, iron nails, a bronze cauldron, animal bones, and a seated skeleton with a sword. 

The skeleton, notionally identified as King Herlaug, was put on display for a time at Trondheim Katedralskole. Unfortunately, the skeleton and artifacts related to the Herlaugshagen mound disappeared sometime during the 1920s. 

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Commander of Submarine USS Georgia Relieved of Duty Due to ‘Loss of Confidence’

Posted on by January 17, 2024

The Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Georgia returns to its homeport at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Georgia, after a 790-day forward-deployment. (U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist Ashley Berumen)

The US Navy announced in a statement that on January 12, 2024, Commander, Submarine Group Ten, Rear Adm. Thomas “T.R.” Buchanan, relieved Capt. Geoffry Patterson as commanding officer of USS Georgia (SSGN 729) Blue Crew due to loss of confidence in his ability to command.

The USS Georgia is homeported at King’s Bay, Georgia. According to data from the Camden County Sheriff’s Office, where King’s Bay is located, Patterson was arrested in the early hours of Jan. 9 on charges including driving under the influence and improper lane change, reports Military.com.  According to the sheriff’s website, Patterson was released on bond after a payment of more than $1,800.

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Houthi Missiles Hit Bulk Carriers Off Yemen; US Retaliatory Air Strikes Continue

Posted on by January 16, 2024

Houthi anti-ship missiles struck two more commercial ships in the Red Sea off Yemen in the last two days. There were no reports of injuries on either ship.

On Tuesday, the Greek-owned 57,000 DWT bulk carrier MT Zografia with 24 crew was sailing in ballast from Vietnam to Israel when it was struck by a missile. It is said to have suffered only minor damage.

The day before, US Central Command (CENTCOM) issued a statement: On Jan. 15 at approximately 4 p.m. (Sanaa time), Iranian-backed Houthi militants fired an anti-ship ballistic missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and struck the M/V Gibraltar Eagle, a Marshall Islands-flagged, U.S.-owned and operated container ship. The ship has reported no injuries or significant damage and is continuing its journey.

(Despite the CENTCOM characterization of the ship as a container ship, the M/V Gibraltar Eagle is a 64,000 DWT bulk carrier.)

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Fifteen Years Ago Today: Flight 1549, NY Harbor Ferries, & the Two “Miracles on the Hudson”

Posted on by January 15, 2024

An updated repost — a look back at the twin miracles on the Hudson from fifteen years ago today. On January 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 lost all engine power after striking a flock of birds shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport and was forced to make an emergency water landing in the Hudson River. If the plane’s pilots, Captain Chesley “Sulley” Sullenberger and First Officer Jeffrey Skiles had not glided the plane in at exactly the right angle and airspeed, it is likely that the plane would have broken apart and that all the 155 passengers and crew aboard could have died.

The landing is often called the “Miracle on the Hudson.” There was, however, a second miracle on the Hudson that day. Remarkably, New York harbor commuter ferries began arriving at the flooding plane less than four minutes after the crash.  Had it not been for the ferries’ rapid rescue of the passengers from the icy waters, the “miracle” might have ended as a tragedy.

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Navy Searches For 2 SEALS Missing Off the Coast of Somalia

Posted on by January 14, 2024

Service members from the destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill board a stateless dhow off the coast of Somalia on Feb. 12, 2021. (Louis Thompson Staats IV/U.S. Navy)

Stars and Stripes reports that the US Navy is still searching for two SEALs missing in the Gulf of Aden more than two days after conducting nighttime operations off the coast of Somalia.

The incident happened Thursday as the SEALs were attempting to board a suspicious vessel in rough seas, The Associated Press reported Saturday, citing unnamed U.S. officials.

One SEAL was attempting to board the vessel when they were knocked off by high waves, AP reported. The other SEAL jumped into the sea to rescue their team member, according to the AP report.

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Maersk to Partially Bypass Panama Canal Backlog by Shifting to Panama Railway

Posted on by January 13, 2024

Photo: Nils Öberg

Maersk Lines has announced that it will be routing containers on its Oceania-to-the Americas “OC1” service around the backlogged, drought-stricken Panama Canal. The line will be transporting cargo via the “land bridge” across the isthmus by the Panama Canal Railway instead.

The Denmark-based shipping and logistics giant said in a customer advisory that the decision was made to ensure cargo “continues to move with as few delays as possible.” The company has not indicated whether it will extend the land bridge concept to other service lines.

Sourcing Journal notes that the modified route creates two separate “loops” on each side of the canal—one in the Atlantic Ocean and another in the Pacific Ocean.

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“New Nessie” on New Brighton Beach — Basking Shark or Plesiosaur?

Posted on by January 12, 2024

Photo: Stephan Davies

On January 5th, Stephen Davies was out on his daily run at New Brighton Beach near Liverpool, UK when he came across what appeared to be the carcass of a sea monster that had washed ashore.  

He said: “I was running on the beach and thought ‘What’s that?’ because it looked quite big.

“I was talking to a fisherman who said it was a basking shark, which I don’t think are fairly common around here, but it could have been washed in by the tide.”

Others were not convinced that the carcass was from a shark, calling the remains the “New Brighton’s Nessie”.  It has often been suggested that the Loch Ness monster may be a wayward plesiosaur.  

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Iranian Navy Seizes Suezmax Tanker in Gulf Of Oman

Posted on by January 11, 2024

The New York Times reports that Iran’s Navy confirmed it had seized St. Nikolas, a Suezmax tanker loaded with crude oil, off the coast of Oman on Thursday, apparently in retaliation for the United States confiscating oil from the same ship last year.

The U.S. government diverted the same ship last April and confiscated its cargo, Iranian oil that was being transported in violation of American sanctions linked to Tehran’s nuclear program. The ship, then called the Suez Rajan, was later renamed the St. Nikolas.

“After the theft of Iranian oil by the United States last year, St Nikolas tanker was seized by Iran’s Navy this morning with a judicial order … it is en route to Iranian ports,” the semi-official Fars news agency reported, citing a statement by the Navy.

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US & UK Navies Shoot Down Largest Barrage of Houthi Drones & Missiles To Date

Posted on by January 10, 2024

Reuters reports that US and British naval forces shot down 21 drones and missiles fired by Yemen-based Houthis on Tuesday towards the southern Red Sea, with Britain hinting at further measures to protect international shipping lanes.

Eighteen drones, two cruise missiles and one ballistic missile were shot down by F/A-18 warplanes from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D Eisenhower, which is deployed in the Red Sea, and by four destroyers, the USS Gravely, USS Laboon, USS Mason and HMS Diamond. HMS Diamond shot down seven of the Houthi drones using its guns and Sea Viper missiles.

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Update: Navy Says Oahu Water Safe To Drink After Red Hill Fuel Cleanup; EPA and Residents Disagree

Posted on by January 9, 2024

Toward the end of December, the US Navy’s Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was drained of fuel, after chronic fuel oil leaks into Oahu’s sole drinking-water aquifer from the World War II era underground tanks. Now that the final tanker has sailed, loaded with the last jet fuel from the vast underground tank farm, the Navy says that Oahu’s water supply is again safe to drink. Local residents, backed by a recent report of an investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), disagree.

The EPA findings have sparked inquiries into the Navy’s water distribution center and plumbing in Pearl Harbor Homes. While the Navy examines residents’ plumbing, a citizens group is urging the Navy to take further safety measures.

According to its investigation, the water in three of four homes detected petroleum hydrocarbons as diesel, ranging from 56 to 71.2 parts per billion. The EPA noted that all petroleum hydrocarbon results were below the Hawaii Department of Health’s screening level of 266 parts per billion for total petroleum hydrocarbons.
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Indian Navy Commandoes Retake Bulk Carrier Lila Norfolk From Armed Hijackers in the Arabian Sea

Posted on by January 8, 2024

INS Chennai

USNI News reports that Indian Navy commandos secured the hijacked Liberian-flagged bulk carrier MV Lila Norfolk last week after a 24-hour confrontation off the Somali Coast in the Arabian Sea. 

Five to six armed hijackers boarded Lila Norfolk on Thursday, which was sailing 450 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia. The crew of the Lila Norfolk, composed of 15 Indian and six Philippine nationals, sheltered from the hijackers in the bulk carrier’s citadel and were unharmed during the entire ordeal. Indian naval forces deployed the destroyer INS Chennai (D65) as well as several helicopters and aircraft, including an American-built P-8 maritime patrol aircraft and a MQ-9B SeaGuardian drone, in response.
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US & UK Navies Suffer Sailor Shortage, Cutting Crews on Carriers & Laying Up Frigates

Posted on by January 7, 2024

This year, the US and Royal navies have fallen short of meeting their recruiting goals, leaving both navies with more ships’ billets than they have personnel to fill them.

In 2023, the US Navy missed its goal of recruiting 37,700 active-duty enlisted sailors by over 7,000, almost 20% short of its target. It also recruited 2,080 officers, almost 18% short of its 2,532 officer goal. It also missed its reserve goals by a wide margin, hitting 3,000 enlisted reservists, or almost 45% short of the 5,390 it wanted. Reserve officers also fell short by 40% hitting 1,167 of the 1,940 goal.

The impact of the recruiting shortfall has been immediate. Forbes reports that in the face of a massive shortage of Navy sailors, America’s newest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), has downsized, cutting the crew aboard by hundreds of sailors. Continue reading →

Global Fishing Watch Uses AI to Reveal That Up to 75% of Large Fishing Vessels Avoid Being Tracked

Posted on by January 6, 2024

Way back in 2015, we posted – Can Big Data Stop Overfishing? Will Google’s Global Fishing Watch Succeed? The post described a new project in which Google partnered with SkyTruth and Oceana to produce a tool to track global fishing activity, in hopes of identifying and cracking down on illegal fishing. Known as Global Fishing Watch (GFW) the interactive web tool uses satellite data to provide detailed vessel tracking and aims to harness the power of citizen engagement to tackle the issue of overfishing.

Now, almost a decade later, the answer to our original question “Will Google’s Global Fishing Watch succeed?” is a muddled “yes” and “no”.

The good news is that GFW has succeeded in using artificial intelligence algorithms (AI) to identify vessels in satellite images of the oceans.

The bad news is that an analysis of the data reveals that up to three-quarters of large fishing boats and about a quarter of energy and transport ships are “dark vessels” that do not publicly share their location, as required by international regulations.

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Update: Oli & Sylph VI, First Cat Across the Finish Line in 78th Sydney to Hobart Race

Posted on by January 5, 2024

We recently posted about Oli the cat, sailing with Captain Bob Williams and co-skipper  Chris Warren, on Sylph VI,  in the two-handed division of the 78th Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.  Oli and his crew finished the race, begun on Boxing Day, on January 1st at 8 AM. 

Technically, Sylph VI, a 12m (40ft) yacht built in 1960, and the oldest yacht in the fleet, was the last yacht to complete the race. (At least 18 of the fleet did not finish the race.)  So while not the fastest yacht in the 103-boat Sydney to Hobart race, Sylph VI was clearly the fastest yacht with a cat aboard — the unchallenged winner of the “feline class.”  (Oli was also the first feline seafarer in the 78-year history of the grueling regatta.)

ABC News Australia reports that the cat and crew of Sylph VI were greeted by about 40 fans on Hobart’s waterfront. The crew of another Sydney to Hobart yacht, Showdown, left Oli a personalized cat carrier so he could join in the traditional post-race beer at Customs House pub.

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The End for the Falls of Clyde? Hawaii Seeking New Contractor to Remove Ship From Honolulu Harbor

Posted on by January 4, 2024

The State of Hawaii is moving closer to removing the historic four-masted iron-hulled ship Falls of Clyde from Honolulu harbor, where it has languished since 2008.  Though owned by the nonprofit Friends of the Falls of Clyde, the state government took over the vessel’s management seven years ago over safety concerns. Falls of Clyde is the only remaining iron-hulled four-masted full-rigged ship and the only surviving sail-driven oil tanker in the world.

A Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) statement notes that the ship is severely corroded, leaking, and has lost its structural and watertight integrity. It presents a risk of structural failure and sinking, threatening harbor safety and maritime operations.

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On New Year’s Day — RMS Warrimoo, In Several Places and Times at Once

Posted on by January 1, 2024

Here is a repost of wonderful sea story suitable for New Year’s Day. It also appears to be more or less true. RMS Warrimoo was an Australian/New Zealand passenger ship, launched in 1892. The ship is best remembered for crossing the intersection of the international dateline and the equator at precisely the turn of the century from 1899 to 1900. Here is how the story is usually told:

The passenger steamer SS Warrimoo was quietly knifing its way through the waters of the mid-Pacific on its way from Vancouver to Australia. The navigator had just finished working out a star fix and brought the master, Captain John Phillips, the result. The Warrimoo’s position was latitude 0 degrees x 31 minutes north and longitude 179 degrees x 30 minutes west.

The date was 30 December 1899. Know what this means? First Mate Payton broke in, we’re only a few miles from the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line.

Captain Phillips was prankish enough to take full advantage of the opportunity to achieve the navigational freak of a lifetime. He called his navigators to the bridge to check and double-check the ship’s position. He changed course slightly to bear directly on his mark. Then he adjusted the engine speed. The calm weather and clear night worked in his favor. At midnight the Warrimoo lay on the Equator at exactly the point where it crossed the International Date Line! Continue reading →

Shooting War Heats Up in Red Sea as US Helicopters Sink 3 Houthi Boats

Posted on by December 31, 2023

On Sunday morning, Dec. 31, at 6:30am (local time) the container ship Maersk Hangzhou issued a second distress call in less than 24 hours reporting being under attack by four Iranian-backed Houthi small boats. The boats, originating from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen, fired at the container ship, getting to within 20 meters of the ship, and attempted to board.

As the ship’s security forces attempted to hold the attackers at bay, helicopters from the USS Eisenhower carrier group arrived and the Houthis opened fire on them.

“The small boats fired upon the US helicopters with crew-served weapons and small arms,” Central Command said in a statement. “The US Navy helicopters returned fire in self-defense, sinking three of the four small boats, and killing the crews. The fourth boat fled the area. There was no damage to U.S. personnel or equipment.” Central Command did not say how many had been killed, but in a statement later on Sunday the Houthis said that 10 of their fighters were dead.

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New Year’s Repost: Watching the Ball Drop — the Nautical Origins of a New Year’s Tradition

Posted on by December 31, 2023

The USNO Millennium Time Ball

Tonight, millions will watch in person, online, or on television, as a jeweled ball drops in Times Square in New York City at exactly midnight to mark the arrival of the New Year, 2024. After several years in which the crowd in Times Square has been limited due to the pandemic, expectations are for close to a million revelers to be crammed together in the square this evening.

Regardless of the turnout, the ball will drop at midnight. The six-ton Waterford crystal ball covered in 32,276 LED lights will not actually be “dropped” but lowered from a flag pole on the roof of One Times Square. In New York City, the tradition dates back to 1907. But where did the tradition of dropping a ball to mark the time originate?  

The practice dates back to 1829 and was related to helping sailors calculate their position at sea. Here is an updated repost.

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