Stuck in Antarctic Ice – Snow Dragon Underway to Rescue MV Akademik Shokalskiy

Posted on by December 26, 2013
MV Akademik Shokalskiy

MV Akademik Shokalskiy

Expedition cruising is often considered “adventure travel” as it involves smaller ships and often more exotic destinations.  The scientists and passengers on the current cruise on the ice-strengthened expedition cruise ship, MV Akademik Shokalskiy, appear to be having more of an adventure than they had bargained for. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) received a distress call on Christmas morning, indicating that the ship was stuck in Antarctic ice around 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart in Tasmania.  Three ice breakers are on their way to break the ship free.  The The 166m-long Chinese icebreaker, Xue Long, which translates as Snow Dragon, is expected to arrive on Friday.

The ship, with 48 passengers and 20 crew members aboard, left New Zealand on Dec. 8, intending to follow in the footsteps of the great Antarctic explorer and scientist Douglas Mawson.  Apparently roughly half the passengers are scientists and half are tourists.  The ship had been following the course of the of Mawson’s  Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE) of 1911, when it became stuck in the ice.

Doug Webb, Slocum Gliders and the GliderPaloosa

Posted on by September 21, 2018

Did you catch GliderPaloosa 2013? No? Neither did I. It was easy to miss as it was almost entirely underwater.   GliderPaloosa 2013 was an event held in September and October, sponsored by NOAA in cooperation with Dalhousie University, the University of Maine, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, and the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, which launched between 12 to 16 autonomous underwater robotic vehicles, also known as Slocum gliders, from Nova Scotia to Georgia.  These gliders were deployed through the peak fall Atlantic storm season to collect data on ocean conditions, which will help improve scientists’ understanding of hurricanes and pave the way for future improvements in hurricane intensity forecasts.  See also our recent post: Underwater Gliders Gather Data to Help Predict Hurricanes

These gliders, named after Joshua Slocum, the first person to sail single handed around the world, use buoyancy and gravity to glide up and down through the oceans, powered only by tiny pumps which move small amounts of water around to adjust the glider’s buoyancy.  The gliders were conceived by Douglas C. Webb with the support of Henry Stommel and others. They are capable of extended independent underwater travel and data collection, surfacing periodically to transmit data to shore by satellite. Here is Doug Webb talking about Slocum gliders.

Doug Webb on the Slocum Glider

The Miniature Ship Red, White, and Blue

Posted on by December 22, 2013

2004-D03-120On July 9, 1866, Captains Hudson and Fitch with their dog, Fanny, sailed from New York in  a three masted full-rigged 26 foot long boat named “Red, White, and Blue.” They arrived in Margate in in East Kent, UK on August 16th.  While the rigging was conventional, if diminutive,  “Red, White, and Blue’s” hull was a galvanized metal lifeboat. The trip was intended to publicize a new metal lifeboat design by New York boat builder, O.K. Ingersoll.  The words “Ingersoll’s Improved Metallic Life Boat” were written on both sides of the hull.

The problem with the marketing plan was that when the square-rigged lifeboat arrived in England, no one believed that two men and a dog had sailed the small craft across the Atlantic in slightly more than a month.  Unfortunately, the two captains had no way to prove that they had indeed sailed “Red, White, and Blue” across the ocean and were never taken seriously. Years later, scholars reviewed the logs, the weather and sightings, and concluded that the two captains and their dog did indeed complete their voyage as claimed.  Even if Captains Hudson and Fitch and Fanny were never given credit in their day for their remarkable voyage, the “Red, White, and Blue” was captured for posterity in a Currier and Ives print now in the collection at Springfield Museums.  Thanks to Harry Milkman for passing the story along.

THE MINIATURE SHIP “RED, WHITE, AND BLUE.”

50 Years Later, Remembering the Lakonia Disaster

Posted on by December 25, 2013

lakoniaBurning1The brochure for for the cruise liner Lakonia promised “A MARVELOUS CHRISTMAS CRUISE TO SUNNY MADEIRA AND THE CANARY ISLANDS…HAVE YOUR HOLIDAY WITH ALL RISK ELIMINATED. ENJOY A HOLIDAY YOU WILL REMEMBER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE.”

Now fifty years later, the survivors and families of those aboard remember the last cruise of the Lakonia, which ended in disaster and the loss of 128 passengers and crew. Earlier this month, survivors unveiled a plaque on Gibraltar to commemorate those lost.  As reported by the Gibraltar Chronicle:

The plaque was commissioned by the Gibraltar Heritage Trust to commemorate the terrible night when the cruise ship caught fire off the coast of Madeira in the Atlantic and lost 128 lives. Of those who perished 58 were buried in North Front Cemetery in Gibraltar, but since then most have been repatriated. There are 14 graves remaining now, nine in the Protestant area, two in the Catholic area and three in the Jewish cemetery.

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German WWI U-Boat UB-122 on the Mudflats of the River Medway

Posted on by December 21, 2013

uboatkentThere was a recent story in the press about  the wreckage of a German World War I submarine beached of mudflats on the banks of the River Medway in Hoo, Kent.   The sub is, believed to be the UB-122,  one of the roughly 100 German submarines turned over to Britain at the end of the war.  The sub has been on the mudflats since 1921, but is in a remote area and is intermittently visible, depending on the tides and the action of storms.  As reported in the Daily Mail:

Yesterday marine archaeologist Mark Dunkley, the maritime designation adviser for English Heritage, said:  ‘Records show that the diesel engines were cut out of UB-122 and reused in a cement works at Halling in Kent – the U-boat’s power plants thus serviced Britain’s post-war industrial development.

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Congratulations to Vice Admiral Michelle Howard, Nominated to be Vice Chief of Naval Operations.

Posted on by December 20, 2013

VADM_Michelle_Howard_2012President Obama recently nominated Vice Admiral Michelle Howard to serve as vice chief of naval operations, the service’s No. 2 uniformed officer. If confirmed, she will be the first black and the first woman to hold the job and the first female four-star admiral, the Navy’s highest rank.  Admiral Howard was also the first black woman to command a US Navy warship, the USS Rushmore and the first to achieve a three star rank.  She was in command of the anti-terror strike force which rescued Captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates following the attack on the Maersk Alabama.  Admiral Howard currently serves as the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Operations, Plans and Strategy.

Sailors Leaving their Mark — Ship Graffiti

Posted on by December 19, 2013

Ships1A recent article in PastHorizons – Adventures in Archaeology looks at the images of ships scratched in the stones of medieval churches of England.   This sailor’s graffiti shows a wide range of vessels that would have plied the waters of England the Continent during the Middle Ages.  From SIGNS OF SAILORS: SHIP GRAFFITI IN MEDIEVAL CHURCHES:

The first time I came across medieval ship graffiti was with John Peake up at the churches of the Glaven ports – Blakeney, Wiveton, Cley and Salthouse – in north Norfolk. Hundreds of little ships carved into the screens, piers and stonework of the churches. Each one different. Each one unique. Some were crude and simple outlines etched in the stone, whilst others showed masses of detail – rigging, anchors, banners, flags and planking. Each one a vessel of the port etched into the parish church. Many were so detailed that to the medieval inhabitants of those villages many of these would have been distinct and recognisable ships, identifiable by a name that we no longer know. Belonging to people they shared their lives with, crewed by friends, family and neighbours. 

This graffiti wasn’t limited to churches. The Vikings scratched images of their ships on any stone or wooden surface they found.  Here is Wulfgar the Bard’s collection of Viking and early medieval ship graffiti on Pinterest.

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WWII Cruiser HMAS Perth Stripped by Scrap Merchants off Java

Posted on by December 18, 2013

Recently there has been disturbing news that the wreck of HMAS Perth is being stripped by scrap merchants in the sea off Java. In February 1942, the Leander class cruiser HMAS Perth was sunk by Japanese torpedoes in the Battle of the Sunda Strait. Of the 681 sailors aboard, 353 died. Of the 328 survivors, all but four became prisoners of war, of which only 218 lived to return home to Australia after the war.  Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing the news along.

WWII shipwreck HMAS Perth stripped by bounty hunters off Java

Earth — Global Weather Visualized

Posted on by December 17, 2013

coverGot a minute? Here is an animation of the world’s weather across the globe, showing the winds blowing across our ocean planet, as forecast by supercomputers and updated every three hours.  You can also rotate the globe in any direction or zoom in and out by clicking and dragging with your mouse, so if you want to look specifically at the North Atlantic or the Southern Ocean, you can do do so. Be careful, however. The display can be mesmerizing.

Earth — Global Weather Visualized

Blackfish, Backlash and the Bailing of the Bands from SeaWorld

Posted on by December 15, 2013

blackfish-posterThis year, Seaworld Orlando is sponsoring “Bands, Brew and BBQ” during February and early March. There may be fewer bands to go with the BBQ and brew than originally planned. At least seven well known performers and bands have pulled out from performing at the event due to what some are calling the “Blackfish effect.”  So far, REO Speedwagon, Trisha Yearwood, Willie Nelson, Cheap Trick, Heart, Barenaked Ladies and Martina McBride have cancelled SeaWorld concerts. Most of the performers have said that they cancelled after watching the documentary, Blackfish.  Joan Jett, who was not scheduled to perform, has demanded that SeaWorld stop using her signature tune, “I Love Rock and Roll,” as the opening music for its ‘Shamu Rocks’ killer whale show.

At this point it is difficult to say who will be performing at SeaWorld’s “Bands, Brew and BBQ” as SeaWorld has removed the performance schedule from their website.

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Fiona Shaw Performs ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner’

Posted on by December 15, 2013

Fiona Shaw, in an excerpt from a new staged reading of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s 1798 poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” This scene features the passage that birthed the expression “albatross around your neck.” The show, directed by Phyllida Lloyd, continues through Dec. 22 at the Harvey Theater of the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

In Performance: Fiona Shaw

Poon Lim, Surviving a Record 133 Days at Sea — “I hope no one will ever have to break it.”

Posted on by April 3, 2015
Poon Lim

Poon Lim

Robert Redford was recently nominated for a Golden Globe award for his remarkable one man performance in the movie, “All is Lost.” While Redford’s acting was impressive, the movie was marred by an apparent lack of even a basic understand of offshore sailboats and sailing. (See our review here.) In the movie, the unnamed sailor is ready to give up, declaring “all is lost,” after only a few days in a life-raft.  In this context, it seems worthwhile to remember Poon Lim, a Chinese merchant seaman, who survived for 133 days on a wooden life raft in the South Atlantic in 1942, the only survivor of the British steamer, Benlomond, which was torpedoed by German submarine U-172 and sank in minutes.

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Oru – the Amazing Origami Kayak

Posted on by February 20, 2014

When designer Anton Willis moved to San Francisco, he had to put his rigid kayak in storage because it didn’t fit in his small city apartment. After four years of design, Willis and his team developed the Oru kayak, a kayak made of a single sheet of corrugated plastic that folds and unfolds like origami.  The resulting boat is a 12 feet 6 inches long single kayak with a 25″ beam that weighs only 25 pounds and can be assembled, with practice, in about 5 minutes.   When folded, kayak in its case is only 33″ x 29″ x 10″.  Quite impressive.  When the Oru team did a Kickstarter promotion about a year ago, their goal was to raise $80,000 for the first production run.  They met that goal in the first five hours and went on to raise an impressive $443,806 from 730 backers. Here is the Kickstarter video that describes the venture:

Oru Kayak

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Fishlove 2013 — Celebrities Posing Naked with Dead Fish

Posted on by December 12, 2013

Gillian-Anderson---conger-006Overfishing, particularity deep sea trawling, is doing grave damage to the ocean’s fish population. What can be done about it?  A group of celebrities – actors, musicians and artists – are taking off their clothes and posing with dead fish to raise awareness of the problem. It is called Fishlove 2013.  How effective is the campaign? To be completely honest, when I see American actor Gillian Anderson with a dead conger eel draped around her neck, my first thought is not necessarily “we must stop deep ocean trawling.”   Nevertheless, the photography is artistic and interesting. Click here to see a slideshow. Better yet, click here to sign a petition to help protect deep ocean life.

Fishlove 2013 – in pictures

 

Learn to Sail the Star of India

Posted on by December 11, 2013

shipmainstar2On a winter’s day, when the temperature here on the banks of the Hudson River is in the low 30s F, but with the wind off the water feels more like the low 20s, there are many reasons to want to pick up and move to sunny and warm, Southern California.  And now I’ve found one more — a press release, issued today, from the Maritime Museum of San Diego.

Have you ever wanted to learn to sail and maintain a tallship?

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Schooner Lettie G. Howard Returns to New York’s South Street Seaport

Posted on by December 10, 2013
Photo: Will Van Dorp

Photo: Will Van Dorp

OK, we are a week late and it is snowing outside, but we do want to to wish the schooner Lettie G. Howard the warmest of welcomes now that she has returned to her berth at the South Street Seaport. We also would like to congratulate all the fine folks who worked so hard to bring her home.

Lettie G. Howard is a wooden Fredonia schooner built in 1893 in Essex, Massachusetts.  After a long and productive working life, she was sold to the South Street Seaport Museum in 1968. In February of 2012, the Lettie was drydocked at the Mystic Seaport in CT to repair rot in her keelson. The rot turned out to be far more extensive than originally thought.  Through the generosity and hard work of supporters, volunteers and staff, more than $250,000 was raised to rebuilt and return the historic schooner to the New York waterfront.   This included an amazing benefit concert featuring Rosanne Cash.

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Will Legendary Socotra Rock Be Latest International Flash Point?

Posted on by December 9, 2013
South Korean Aegis destroyer Yulgok YiYi patrols the waters around Socotra Rock, south of Jeju Island, on Dec. 2. Photograph by Yonhap via EPA

South Korean Aegis destroyer Yulgok YiYi patrols the waters around Socotra Rock, south of Jeju Island, on Dec. 2. Photograph by Yonhap via EPA

On Sunday, the government of South Korea announced that it was extending its air defense zone to include Socotra Rock, a submerged pinnacle in the Yellow Sea.  The Korean air defense zone now overlaps with the air defense zones already claimed by both China and Japan and is expected to increase tensions in the region. Both Korea and China had already claimed the rock as part of of each countrys’ “exclusive economic zones,” (EEZ).

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USS Oklahoma — December 7, 1941 And Beyond

Posted on by December 7, 2013

oklahomasinksOn the morning of December 7, 1941, USS Oklahoma was moored at an outside berth in the inner harbor at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor that day, the USS Oklahoma was directly in the flight path of the attacking planes.  USS Oklahoma was struck by nine torpedoes and rolled over in roughly 10 minutes. The diagram above shows the sequence of the capsize and the torpedo strikes that doomed the ship and four hundred and twenty-nine of her crew.

The USS Oklahoma was the last ship to be salvaged at Pearl Harbor.  The ship weighted about 32,000 metric tons and was rolled almost 180 degrees.  To right the ship, the Navy used a salvage technique called parbuckling.  Large A frames were mounted along the length of the hull to provide the leverage necessary to roll the ship.  The process took roughly four months and was finished in June 1943.  The ship was judged too damaged to be repaired. On the tow to a scrap yard in California, the USS Oklahoma sank in a storm in May 1947.

Salvage of the Battleship USS Oklahoma Following the Attack on Pearl Harbor 1942 1942-46

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Canada to Claim North Pole — Status of Santa Uncertain

Posted on by December 6, 2013

338393_Canada-North-PoleReports are that Canada is filing a claim to extend its northern sea boundary to encompass an area of over 1 million square miles of Arctic seafloor which includes the North Pole, under provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The Canadian are said to have spent the past 10 years and $200 million dollars to document the claim that they are expected to file with the UN today.  A preliminary assessment by the US Geological Survey suggests the Arctic seabed may hold as much as 25 percent of the world’s undiscovered oil and natural gas reserves.   PressTV reports that “Experts say a decision on the Arctic seafloor is probably 20 years away, with scientific evaluation on Canada’s claim taking roughly five years.”

The Canadians are not alone in their claims. Russia, Denmark, Norway, and the United States all claim overlapping sections of the Arctic seas and sea floor. Of the group, the United States is alone in not having ratified the UNCLOS treaty.

Currently both Russia and Canada are claiming the North Pole.  The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea has provisions and clauses for adjudicating conflicting claims.  Disturbingly, however, it does not appear to have a Santa clause. (Sorry.) Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to this post.