In our recent review of Robert Redford’s new movie, All is Lost, about a solo sailor in a sinking sailboat, we noted various glitches, mistakes and omissions which distracted from an otherwise gripping and engaging movie. Readers who commented on the post have added extensively to the list of problems with the film.
One topic that has not been raised was the relatively brief period of time that the unnamed sailor played by Redford spent in the life raft. The movie starts in a life raft with a voice-over in which the sailor is saying goodbye to unidentified loved ones. A graphic then appears on the screen which says “Eight Days Earlier,” and the movie begins. From the events that take place, it looks like the sailor cannot have been in the life raft for more than four or five days until he has concluded that “all is lost” writing a note to loved ones that he throws overboard in a glass jar. It is unclear by the end of the movie how many more days have passed but as evidenced by the lack of a growth of beard, it can’t be many more.
One of our chief complaints about All is Lost was the absence of emergency electronic signalling devices, such as an EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon.) Fortunately, these days, with satellite communications, most sailors who get into trouble can call for help electronically. This is, however, a fairly recent advance. For virtually all of history, sailors in lifeboats have been on their own. Here is a look back at three sets of surviving sailors who spent far more time in their life rafts than the the sailor in “All is Lost.”
Award-winning architect Dame Zaha Hadid has designed a family of super-yachts with a skeletal superstructure for the German shipbuilders Blohm+Voss. These are the first super-yachts designed by Hadid who is known for a wide range of project including the Roca London Gallery, the BMW Central Building in Leipzig, Germany, MAXXI National Museum of 21st Century Arts in Rome and thethe Aquatics Centre built in London for last summer’s Olympics.
Google has been causing quite a stir on the waterfront. Two mysterious barges have appeared, one on the Pacific in 
Today is the first anniversary of 
Last week, two rare oarfish washed up (or in the case of the first was dragged up) on the shores of Southern California. Yesterday, Japan was stuck by a 7.3 magnitude earthquake. A coincidence? It seems that there is Japanese folklore that says that sighting of oarfish portends a coming earthquake. Oarfish are the longest bony fish in the ocean and can grow up to around 17 meters or 56 feet long. The two that washed up in California were only 18′ and 14′ long, which is still very impressive. Oarfish, which tend to stay in deep water, are rarely seen on the surface. When they do make an appearance they are understandably often referred to as “sea serpents,” given their long snake-like bodies. It is easy to understand how they might be useful in folklore as a predictor of ill-tidings. If sea serpents start appearing, something bad must be coming. In Japan, the oarfish is traditionally known as the “Messenger from the Sea God’s Palace.” (If the Sea God is sending you a message, it is better sent by a sea serpent rather than a sea bass.)
The first US Navy “
At about the same time that the Forrestal was sent to scrap, Bath Iron Works in Maine floated 
A second rare 
October 21st is a busy day in nautical history. In addition to being the anniversary of the 
Congratulations to all the racers in this year’s 
“
The composite clipper ship, 