10,000 Square Mile Floating Island in the Pacific

Posted on by August 11, 2012

I received an e-mail a few weeks ago with some intriguing photos. (Click on any of the thumbnails above for a larger image.)  The e-mail was titled “AMAZING SIGHT IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC, SPECTACULAR.”  It was one of those e-mails that had been forwarded over and over again and had no sources and no date. It would be hard to say whether the photographs were current or from years ago. Nevertheless, they were fascinating. The photographs were taken from a yacht that had encountered what appeared to be a beach, stretching as far as the eye could see in the middle of the South Pacific.   It turned out that it was floating pumice, the volcanic rock formed when lava erupts underwater.

Update:  The photos above date from at least 2006.   They apparently first appeared on the Fredrik and Crew on Maiken blog and were taken near Late Island, southwest of Vavaʻu in the kingdom of Tonga. (Thanks to Phil Leon for the heads up.)

In a similar event, the New Zealand Navy is now reporting a “pumice raft” covering an area of roughly 10,000 square miles, an area only slightly smaller than the nation of Belgium, floating in the Pacific about 1,000 miles off the New Zealand coast.
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Legendary Cable Layer, Chamarel (ex CS Vercors), On Fire & Abandoned Off Namibia’s Skeleton Coast

Posted on by August 10, 2012

France Telecom-Orange announced today that an unexplained fire had broken out on Thursday on the cable laying ship, the Chamarel, in the Atlantic Ocean off Namibia’s Skeleton Coast in the Atlantic Ocean.   The crew of 56 abandoned ship after attempts at firefighting failed to control the blaze.  The crew was picked up by a Namibian fishing vessel and taken to Walvis Bay. No injuries were reported.  The ship was returning from making repai to the Sat3/WASC/Safe submarine cable which connects Portugal and Spain to nine West African countries, circles around the southern tip of Africa, and connects to India and Malaysia.

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2,000 Year Old Roman Shipwreck Found Near Genoa

Posted on by August 10, 2012

Tipped off by fisherman who caught amphorae in their nets, the wreck of a Roman merchant ship, believed to date from between the 1st century B.C. and the 2nd century, has been located in 230 feet of water near the Italian port city of Genoa.  The ship is believed to have been carrying around 200 jars, known as amphorae.  Tests on recovered amphorae suggest that they were carrying pickled fish, grain, wine and oil. Thanks to Phil Leon for passing along the news.

Roman ship found laden with cargo

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Update: MSC Flaminia Seeking Port of Refuge

Posted on by August 9, 2012

In the middle of July, we posted about a fire and explosion on the  6,750 TEU container ship MSC Flaminia in the mid-Atlantic, resulting in the death of one of the crew and one crew member missing and presumed dead.  The surviving crew abandoned the ship. The fire was subsequently brought under control by three salvage tugs and brought under tow back toward Europe.

For the last week or so, however, the ship and her escorting tugs have been in a holding position 150 miles off Land’s End while the ship’s owners plead with UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal  to allow the ship to enter their coastal waters.

“I think it’s ridiculous that a ship sailing under a German flag in this situation can’t get permission from countries in the European community,” said Helmut Ponath, head of NSB shipping company.

Burned cargo ship sails the Atlantic

EPA and the Ports of New York and LA Work to Limit Air Pollution from Ships

Posted on by August 9, 2012

Consider these two statements:

  1. Ships are the most energy efficient way to transport goods.  They also have the smallest carbon footprint per ton of any means of transport.
  2. Ships are major polluters. One large container ship emits as much sulfur-oxide as fifty million cars.

Which statement is true? They both are. Ships are incredibly energy efficient and most large ocean going ships burn very dirty fuel.  The comparison between the container ship and the cars is more than a bit unfair as the most gasoline around the world now has a very low sulfur content. In terms of other pollutants ships are cleaner than cars or trucks. Ships emit far lower CO2 per ton carried than either truck or automobiles, for example. Nevertheless, residual fuel, often referred to as Bunker C, is very dirty and highly polluting.

Recently the Environmental Protection Agency( EPA) and the US ports of New York and Los Angeles have taken steps to limit the scope and impact of that pollution.   Landmark EPA regulations to reduce air pollution from ships off the East and West coasts of North America went into effect on August 1st.  Ships operating in US coastal waters will now be required to burn a lower sulfur fuel. Environmental groups are pleased, while some in the cruise industry are not. As reported by Scientific American:

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OMG ! Admiral Jacky Fischer was Ahead of His Time!

Posted on by August 8, 2012

Admiral Fischer – Ahead of his time, OMG!

Admiral of the Fleet John Arbuthnot “Jacky” Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher of Kilverstone, is considered by some to be the second most important figure in British naval history, after Lord Nelson.  An innovator and a strategist who played a key role in taking the Royal Navy from wooden sailing ships to steel-hulled battlecruisers, submarines and the first aircraft carriers, Lord Fisher was apparently also linguistically ahead of his time. As reported by NineMSN:

Lord Fisher used the three-letter abbreviation in a 1917 letter to Winston Churchill in which he complained of negative newspaper headlines during World War I. 

“I hear that a new order of Knighthood is on the tapis — O.M.G (Oh! My! God!) — Shower it on the Admiralty!!,” Lord Fisher wrote.

One presumes that the knighthood OMG would rank somewhere below the British rank of OM (Order of Merit) or the OBE (Order of the British Empire.)

The acronym OMG gained official recognition only last year when it entered the Oxford Dictionary.  Thanks to Roger Moore for pointing out the story on the Facebook All Things Nautical Group.

Senate Keeps “Great Green Fleet” Alive, for Now

Posted on by August 7, 2012

After being threatened the by Republican cost-cutters, the Senate defense appropriations subcommittee recently voted to continue funding the Navy’s “Great green Fleet” alternative energy program.

In 2009, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced the Navy’s “Great Green Fleet” initiative with the goals of decreasing the Navy’s consumption of energy, decreasing its reliance on foreign sources of oil, and significantly increasing its use of alternative energy.  In July of this year, the Republican Congress attempted to sink the “Great Green Fleet,” declaring it wasteful and too expensive. Secretary Ray Mabus countered calling it vital for the military’s energy security.  The experimental bio-fuels being developed in the program cost roughly $26 per gallon as compared to the less than $4 that the Navy often spends for fuel.
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Art by Christina Sun and Frank Hanavan on the Historic Buoy Tender Lilac

Posted on by August 7, 2012

Frank Hanavan’s W.O. Decker

The bulkheads of the historic buoy tender Lilac will be graced by the maritime paintings of Christina Sun and Frank Hanavan from Tuesday, August 7 through August 31.  The Lilac is berthed at Hudson River Park’s Pier 25 at West Street and N. Moore Street in lower Manhattan.

A Video for Monday Morning – Duyfken July 2012

Posted on by August 6, 2012

In 1606, the Duyfken, commanded by  Willem Janszoon, became the first European vessel to sail to the continent of Australia.    In 1999, in an act of “experimental archaeology,” a replica of of the Dutch ship was built in Freemantle, Australia. The goal was to build a replica that approached the remarkable sailing qualities of the original ship.  The effort was a success.  Now over 400 years after the original first sailed the shallow seas of the East Indies, the Duyfken replica continues its legacy.  Recently three short videos were posted of the  Duyfken sailing in the Arafura Sea between Australia and New Guinea.  Thanks to Margaret Muir for pointing them out.

Duyfken July 2012

For more video of the Duyfken, click here and here.  To learn more see : The Duyfken 1606 Replica Foundation

Linda Collison’s Barbados Bound

Posted on by August 5, 2012

Barbados Bound, the first book of the Linda Collison’s Patricia MacPherson Nautical Adventure Series has been published by Fireship Press. First published as Star-Crossed in 2006 by Alfred A. Knopf, the New York Public Library chose Star-Crossed to be among the Books for the Teen Age — 2007. The revised re-released book is targeted for an adult audience (though should still appeal to young adults.) See our previous reviews of Star-Crossed and Surgeon’s Mate, the second book of the Patricia MacPherson series.

From David Hayes, writing for Historical Naval Fiction:

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Happy 222nd Birthday US Coast Guard!

Posted on by August 4, 2012

Two hundred and twenty years ago today on August 4th, 1790, Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton established the  Revenue Cutter Service, predecessor to the United States Coast Guard. (In 1915, the service merged with the United States Life-Saving Service and adopted its current name.)  So happy birthday to the US Coast Guard, the nation’s oldest seagoing service.

Joan Druett’s “A Love of Adventure” – a Review

Posted on by August 3, 2012

Many of the classics of nautical literature are stories of young men who set off to sea, often compelled, in equal parts, by necessity and a longing for adventure. Joan Druett’s “A Love of Adventure” is just such a tale, with an important twist or two. Her young hero, Abigail Pandora Sherman, is a heroine and has no need to run off to sea, as she was born and largely raised aboard her father’s merchant brig, with which she shares her middle name. “A Love of Adventure” is a wonderfully written and highly entertaining novel, carrying the reader from New Zealand to New Bedford and back again, by way of Panama and the wilder coasts of South America. It is a rousing adventure and coming of age story that also includes elements of mystery and intrigue.

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Admiral Nelson Gets a New Hat

Posted on by August 3, 2012

The statue of Admiral Nelson on the top of a Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square is now sporting a fancy new hat featuring a Union Jack and an Olympic torch.  Nelson would have likely approved. He was known as a rather flashy dresser. Some have suggested that had he not worn his admiral’s jacket with decorations at the Battle of Trafalgar, his day might have ended somewhat better.  Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing the story along.

Nelson’s Column gets a makeover: Admiral wears new hat

Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York – the Fastest Growing Boating Competition that You May Never Have Heard Of

Posted on by August 2, 2012


The 22st Annual Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York will be held this weekend in Meadow Lake at Flushing Meadows, Corona Park.  Fielding 170 dragon boat teams and over 2,000 participants, it is one of the largest boating festivals in New York City.   In addition to two days of dragon boat racing, there will be also be  traditional Chinese foods and performances including the Shaolin Temple Warrior Monks demonstrating Kung Fu, the Drum Spirit of China, as well as other performers who will perform traditional music and dance from China, Mexico and Peru.

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In Honor of Melville’s Birthday – Whale’s Tail Pale Ale from Nantucket

Posted on by August 1, 2012

One of the joys and pains of buying beer these days, is that there is are so many interesting craft beers to choose from. Some are marvelous, some are unremarkable, while a few are wildly over-hopped, which some American craft brewers think is cutting edge. (It isn’t. It is simply bitter.) Recently, there has been a interesting shift of focus away from hops alone toward malt. All of which is long-winded way of saying that I recently came across the Cisco Brewery of Nantucket’s Whale’s Tale Pale Ale. Delightful. A richly malted ale with a complex fruitiness balancing nicely with the East Golding hops. While it is described as a British Pale Ale, it is best served cold. A very pleasant summer beer. This evening, I will be toasting Melville’s birthday with a Whale’s Tale Pale Ale.

Review in BeerAdvocate.   Review in the Village Voice.

Does anyone else have a favorite nautical themed beer?

Today in History – Herman Melville, Sailor’s Snug Harbor & Nelson at Aboukir Bay

Posted on by August 2, 2012

Herman Melville

Today is the birthday of Herman Melville, one of the greatest American writers. He was born in 1819 on Pearl Street in downtown Manhattan, almost directly across the Hudson from where I am now writing this post. He will always be remembered for his masterpiece Moby Dick. Ironically, Moby Dick, published in 1851, was not a critical or commercial success and ruined Melville’s reputation, and indeed his career, as a writer. Melville’s books were out of print for decades before his death. He spent his last 19 years as a customs inspector in Manhattan.

Also, on August 1, 1833, Sailor’s Snug Harbor opened on Staten Island and the first 37 old and indigent mariners moved into the retirement community built for them with money left by Captain Robert Randall. Over 40,000 sailors would ultimately retire to Sailor’s Snug Harbor. Captain Thomas Melville, a retired sea captain and Herman Melville’s brother, would serve as governor of Snug Harbor from 1867 to 1884. See the video about Snug Harbor after the page break.

And finally on this day in 1798, Nelson ruined Napoleon’s plans in Egypt by destroying much of the French fleet in the Battle of the Nile, which was not actually fought in the Nile but in Aboukir Bay.

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Britain’s Oldest Shipping Company, Stephenson Clarke Shipping, in Liquidation

Posted on by July 31, 2012

In 1730, the third year of the reign of King George II, two brothers, Ralph and Robert Clarke, bought shares in a 300-ton sailing vessel. Their enterprise would become Stephenson Clarke Shipping, which in recent years  has specialized in the shipment of short sea bulk cargoes.  Last week, Stephenson Clarke filed for liquidation.  In 2008, the company operated a fleet of ten bulk carriers. By the end of 2011, the fleet had been reduced to two. On Thursday of last week, the last ship was sold. Stephenson Clarke, the oldest shipping company in Great Britain, becomes part of history.

British Navy Borrowing a Billionaire’s Octopus to Find A Battlecruiser’s Bell

Posted on by July 30, 2012

Paul Allen’s yacht Octopus

Billionaire and philanthropist, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is loaning his 126 metre superyacht Octopus to the British Royal Navy to mount an expedition to locate and raise the bell from the battle cruiser HMS Hood (51) sunk by the German battleship Bismark in the Denmark Strait in 1941. Only three survived the sinking in which  1,415 died, the largest loss of life ever suffered by any single British warship.

If the recovery effort is successful, the bell will be given to the HMS Hood Association to be displayed at a new exhibition hall due to open at the Royal Navy Museum. The wreck of HMS Hood was discovered in 2001, in water 2,800 meters deep, and has been designated under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986.  The bell is known to be lying on the seabed well away from the ship’s hull which will not be disturbed by the recovery operation. The government has licensed the recovery of the bell – as well as providing a memorial, the recovery will prevent it being taken by any illegal operation for personal gain, an MoD spokesman said. Thanks to Captain Michael J. Howorth for passing the news along.

As noted by Super Yacht News, none of the newspapers carrying the story of the loaning of Octopus to the Royal Navy explain why it is a superyacht carrying out the expedition and not a properly equipped salvage vessel.

Paul Allen to Loan Octopus to Royal Navy in Search for Bell from HMS Hood

WWII U-550 Located 70 Miles South of Nantucket, Massachusetts

Posted on by July 29, 2012

Crew of U-550 abandoning ship 1944

Yesterday we posted about the possible discovery of a German WWII  submarine sunk in the Churchill River in Labrador, Canada. Now we have learned that the German World War II submarine U-550 has been located in the Atlantic, 70 miles south of the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts.

WWII German U-boat found off Massachusetts coast

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