Playful Humpbacks & Other Whales “Kelping” — Wearing Seaweed as a Hat

Posted on by September 27, 2023

Photo: Whale Watch Western Australia

There is so much that we do not understand about the social behaviors of whales and dolphins. Dolphins off the Australian coast, for example, have been observed wearing sponges as hats in what is believed to be an attempt, though not often necessarily successful, to attract a mate. Likewise, in 1987 off the coast of Washington, at least three groups of teenaged orcas inexplicably began wearing dead salmon as hats. The behavior spread in what appeared to be a “fad” for a few months before disappearing again.

Humpbacks and other baleen whales have been observed “kelping”, balancing seaweed on their rostrum —  their flat upper head.  In a recent study from Griffith University in Australia, researchers have observed that this behavior is far more common than previously appreciated. Also, while the activity appears playful, it may have other benefits for the whales. 

The researchers collected over 100 examples on social media of whales playing with seaweed, known as “kelping”. They note that it’s not just one species –  gray whales, southern and northern right whales, and humpback whales all do it.

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MSC Orders Two Cruise Ships With Green Multi-Fuel Options

Posted on by September 27, 2023

The headline on Cruise&Ferry.net reads “MSC confirms orders for hydrogen-powered ships for Explora Journeys.” The headline is somewhat misleading as the new ships on order from Fincantieri for MSC’s luxury cruise brand Explora Journeys, will not be hydrogen-powered, per se, but will apparently be configured with the capability to burn a range of green or at least greener fuels. 

The new ships, Explora V and VI will reportedly make use of liquid hydrogen with fuel cells for their hotel operations while docked in ports to enable them to switch off their engines and eliminate carbon emissions. Propulsive power will be provided by a new generation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) engines that will reduce the issue of methane slip, in which unburned fuel escapes into the atmosphere. 

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Disappointing Results of Largest Loch Ness Monster Hunt in 50 Years

Posted on by September 22, 2023

Over the weekend of August 26th and 27th, hundreds of volunteers gathered on the shores and on the waters of Loch Ness for what was billed as the largest search for the Loch Ness monster in 50 years. What was discovered during the “quest” weekend?

The so-called monster proved to be elusive, despite hundreds of searchers using everything from binoculars and webcams to thermal-imaging drones and hydrophones. With live streaming of the event, the world was invited to observe, but sadly for the Nessie enthusiasts, the monster did not show.

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Update: SS Badger — MARAD Approves $600,000 Study to Convert Coal-Burning Steamship to Zero-Emissions

Posted on by September 21, 2023

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) has awarded nearly $12 million in grants to eight marine highway projects across the nation under the United States Marine Highway Program (USMHP). 

One of these grants, $600,000 awarded to Lake Michigan Carferry, Inc., is to study the feasibility of converting the historic steamship SS Badger, the last coal-fired, passenger car ferry operating on the Great Lakes, to a zero-emission ferry vessel. 

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“Hero” Humpbacks Attempt to Protect Seal From Orca Attack

Posted on by September 16, 2023

Recently, Bertie Gregory, a National Geographic Explorer and host of Animals Up Close on Disney+, observed a remarkable attempt by two humpback whales to protect a seal under attack by a pod of orcas in Antarctica’s Weddell Sea.

National Geographic reports that Gregory and his crew had traveled across the Drake Passage that separates South America from the southernmost continent to film a rare orca population called B1. Known for their unique strategy of creating waves that knock seals off pieces of ice, these genetically distinct Antarctic orcas, likely number only around a hundred.

Gregory and his crew of filmmakers and scientists began following a small pod of B1s hunting seals in the driving snow. Soon, the pod zeroed in on their prey—a Weddell seal lying smack-dab in the middle of a large piece of ice.

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British Endurance Swimmer Lewis Pugh Swims 315 Mile Length of Hudson River

Posted on by September 15, 2023

On August 13 2023, British endurance swimmer and environmental activist Lewis Pugh began his 315-mile (507-km) swim down the Hudson River, from its source at Lake Tear of the Clouds, to its end at New York City. He finished the swim, ‘exhausted but rejuvenated’, on Wednesday, September 13, at Battery Park.  Pugh made the epic swim to raise awareness of water quality.

The 53-year-old endurance swimmer emerged from the water off the lower tip of Manhattan after a month-long journey, clad in a Speedo, cap and goggles. He smiled and raised his fist in triumph as he climbed out. Supporters who had gathered despite light rain cheered.

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Guessing the Deployment After Royal Navy Vanguard Class Sub Returns Looking Like a “Sea Monster”

Posted on by September 14, 2023

Photo: Sheila Weir / Royal Navy

The War Zone column from the Drive.com blog recently featured photographs of a Royal Navy Vanguard class submarine returning to HM Naval Base Clyde, which is also known as Faslane, on the west coast of Scotland, after a 197-day nuclear deterrent patrol. The nuclear ballistic missile sub looked like what they describe as a “sea monster that had emerged from a long slumber at the bottom of the ocean.”  The hull is indeed covered by an impressive growth of marine fouling.

Of course, the mission of ballistic missile submarines, often referred to as “boomers,” is to serve as undetectable launch platforms for intercontinental missiles, which is to say that their job is to go find a place to hide in the ocean for extended periods of time.  The opportunity to keep the hull free of maritime growth is, at best, limited, even with the latest anti-fouling coatings now available.

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On the 22st Anniversary of 9/11, Remembering the Great New York Boatlift

Posted on by September 11, 2023

An updated repost. There is a line from a Paul Simon song, “these are the days of miracle and wonder.” One might not think to apply that lyric to the events of 9/11, 22 years ago today. Yet for at least part of that strange and horrible day, they fit.

The great New York boatlift was part of the “miracle and wonder.” The wholly unplanned boatlift was the spontaneous maritime evacuation of an estimated 500,000 people trapped in Lower Manhattan in less than 10 hours. The boatlift has been under-reported by the media, which is all the more reason to remember the mariners of New York who stepped up to perform what has been called the largest sea rescue in history.

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Update: North Korea Launches Submarine Claimed to be Capable of Launching Nuclear Missiles

Posted on by September 8, 2023

North Korea has unveiled a new “tactical nuclear attack submarine,” based on a remodeled Soviet-era vessel, equipped with multiple launching tubes capable of launching nuclear missiles. Submarine No. 841 – named Hero Kim Kun Ok – will be one of the main “underwater offensive means of the naval force” of North Korea, leader Kim Jong Un said at the launch ceremony on Wednesday.

But South Korea’s military expressed skepticism about the submarine on Friday, saying that it “doesn’t look capable of normal operation” and that there were signs of “deception and exaggeration” in the North’s report.

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Update: Reza Baluchi Attempts to Run Across the Atlantic in His “Hamster Wheel of Doom,” Arrested By Coast Guard

Posted on by September 6, 2023

Photo: FLAGLER COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Reza Baluchi is at it again. The US Coast Guard intercepted Baluchi in the Atlantic about 70 miles (110km) off Tybee Island, Georgia on August 26 in his most recent attempt to run across the ocean, this time from the US East Coast to London, in what the Coast Guard refers to as a “Hamster Wheel of Doom.”  

For over a decade, extreme runner Baluchi has set off on a series of quixotic voyages in a homemade bubble contraption with a metal frame that looks like a human hamster wheel. This is at least his fourth attempted transit, all of which have ended with his being rescued or stopped by the Coast Guard. 

This time the Coast Guard says its cutter encountered Baluchi while making preparations for an offshore hurricane. Officials said the 44-year-old marathon runner refused to leave the vessel for three days. Baluchi refused to step off the vessel and threatened to kill himself. He also claimed that he had a bomb on board, according to court papers.

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Update: Deadly Conception Dive Boat Fire, Where 34 Died, Started in Trash Can According to AFT

Posted on by September 5, 2023

The dive boat Conception smolders at sunrise on Sept. 2, 2019, before sinking. (National Transportation Safety Board)

The LA Times reports that the deadly fire that broke out four years ago aboard the Conception dive boat, killing 34 people, started in a plastic trash can on the main deck, a confidential report reviewed by The Times shows.

Investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) built a full-scale mock-up of the middle deck of the 75-foot vessel in their quest to determine the fire’s point of origin and cause. They conducted a series of burn tests at their Maryland research lab, which concluded the blaze began in a rubbish container and then quickly spread. Within minutes, the boat’s main salon was in flames, the testing showed.

The findings shed new light on the deadliest maritime disaster in modern California history, adding to the mystery surrounding its cause. However, due to ongoing criminal and civil court proceedings related to the incident, the report has not been publicly disclosed.

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Inspired by FLIP, Polar Pod to Explore the Mysteries of the Southern Ocean

Posted on by September 2, 2023

We recently posted about the remarkable 61-year career of the one-of-a-kind research vessel FLoating Instrument Platform, known as FLIP. FLIP was essentially a massive 355-foot-long spar buoy used to study oceanic wave height, acoustic signals, water temperature, and density.

Now, if all goes to plan,  the Polar Pod, a new oceanographic research station in the form of a ‘vertical ship, inspired by FLIP, will commence operations in the Southern Ocean from 2024-2026.

In orbit around Antarctica, the Polar Pod will be carried along  on the circumpolar current, and will circle the earth between 50 ° and 55 ° S.

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Remembering Captain Bill Pinkney, First Black Man to Sail Solo Around the World via the 5 Great Capes

Posted on by September 1, 2023

We are saddened to learn that Captain William “Bill” Pinkney died on August 31, 2023 at the age of 87. Captain Pinkney was the first Black man to sail solo around the world via the 5 Great Capes.

Captain Pinkney was in Atlanta, GA serving as an advisor for an upcoming documentary. He passed away on Thursday morning from injuries he suffered after falling down a flight of stairs a few days ago.

Captain Pinkney’s voyage featured the rounding of the five great capes including Cape Horn. The 27,000-mile circumnavigation took 22 months and ended on June 9, 1992. Throughout the trip, Pinkney sent footage back to Globe TV and communicated with some 30,000 school children. The finished production titled, “The Incredible Voyage of Bill Pinkney,” won the George Foster Peabody Award for excellence in children’s television programming. The film has aired on the Disney Channel, National Geographic, and PBS stations and is now available on YouTube.

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An Octopus’s Garden in Deep, Dark, & Warm Water

Posted on by August 30, 2023

Richard Starkey, better known as Ringo Star, wrote the song, Octopus’s Garden, for the Beatles 1969 album Abbey Road. The first verse goes:

I’d like to be/Under the sea/In an octopus’ garden/In the shade…

In a recent study, researchers describe finding an octopus’s garden beneath the sea about 80 miles from the coast of central California. It is believed to be the largest congregation of deep-sea octopuses ever discovered on Earth, where over 6,000, and possibly as many as 20,000, octopuses huddle around an extinct underwater volcano in the black, cold ocean depths, almost two miles below the surface.

The aggregation of octopus was discovered in 2018 and has remained something of a mystery. Octopuses are generally antisocial loners that would rather fight each other than live in close quarters. 

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Update: Canopée, Ro-Ro “Rocket Ship,” for European Space Agency Ready to Set Sail

Posted on by August 29, 2023

In 2021, we posted about the start of construction of a sail-assisted cargo ship, built to carry Ariane 6 rockets for the European Space Agency (ESA).  Now, the ro-ro cargo ship, Canopée, has completed sea trials and is ready to begin commercial service carrying launcher parts from European ports to the Pariacabo port in Kourou, French Guiana.

In addition to diesel propulsion, the 121-meter long Canopée is equipped with four 30-meter high Oceanwings, automated and reefable soft wingsails.

The Oceanwing sails, developed by AYRO, each have a surface area of 363 square meters. The sails consist of two flaps, one forward and one aft. The design makes it possible to adjust the angle of incidence of the wings, which turn 360 degrees in relation to the wind while the rear flap can pivot around the secondary mast to create a camber in relation to the front flap. The sails are collapsible. 

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