Searching for the USS Thresher and USS Scorpion with the Titanic as Cover

Posted on by April 5, 2012

Late last month, the secret was revealed – when Bob Ballard discovered the Titanic in 1985,  he was actually on a  secret mission to find two sunken US submarines, the USS Thresher and USS Scorpion, both of which had sunk in the Atlantic in the 1960s.   Only after his team located and surveyed the two missing subs was he allowed to search for the Titanic, leaving only a twelve day window to located the sunken passenger liner.

Titanic: The Final Secret

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Titanic search was cover for secret Cold War subs mission
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Yukon Protects the wreck of A.J. Goddard on Lake Labarge

Posted on by June 13, 2010

Yukon protects Klondike shipwreck site

Just months after a team of archeologists revealed their discovery of a historic Klondike shipwreck in waters north of Whitehorse, the Yukon government has declared the sunken A.J. Goddard sternwheeler a historic site symbolizing the “sense of adventure” that gripped North America at the height of the 1890s gold rush.
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STRAND CRAFT 122 – Custom Yacht & Custom Car

Posted on by June 12, 2010

It is such a relief that we never really have to worry about the very wealthy among us running out of places to spend their money.   Here may be but the latests example of where those with more money than sense can drop  a seizable sum.  The Strand Craft 122 promises to be a super yacht with a super car.  Each 38 meter mega-yacht comes with a matching custom automobile.

$25M ‘Bond’ yacht with matching supercar
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SS Robin, Oldest Steam Coaster, Soon to Have New Home

Posted on by June 12, 2010

The SS Robin, built in 1890, is the last remaining steam coaster in the world. She will soon be moved to a custom built pontoon barge which will support the old ship and serves as space for a floating museum.  The pontoon recently arrived in Lowestoft in the UK.   The SS Robin is expected to be lifted onto the pontoon on June 28th.  Thanks to Alaric Bond for the heads up.
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Abby Sunderland Update, Photo of “Wild Eyes”

Posted on by June 11, 2010

Wild Eyes, Abby Sunderland's dismasted sailboat

Rough weather is reported to be delaying  the French fishing boat that is on its way to rescue Abby Sunderland.   Her sailboat, Wild Eyes, has been dismasted but has not lost its keel as was earlier reported.   A photograph of the boat,  taken by the spotter plane that located her, has been released.

Rough weather delays teen sailor rescue

On Jacques Cousteau’s Centennial, the Calypso to Sail Again?

Posted on by June 11, 2010

Today is the 100th anniversary of the birth of Jacques Cousteau.  It is hard to overstate Cousteau’s influence as an inventor, writer, filmmaker, explorer and ecologist.   His first book, the Silent World, written with Frédéric Dumas in 1953, was a memoir which describes how Cousteau and Émile Gagnan designed, built and tested the aqua-lung in 1943.  It was  an immediate best seller and is still in print, having been published in 22 languages and selling over 5 million copies.  The documentary, Silent World, based on the book, co-directed by Cousteau and Louis Malle,  earned Cousteau the first of his two Academy Awards.   In his lifetime Cousteau would go on to write over 50 books and to produce more than 120 television documentaries.  Jacques Cousteau died on 25 June 1997  at age 87.

Most of films and television programs were shot from the RV Calypso, a converted Royal Navy minesweeper. The ship was accidentally rammed by a barge in Singapore in 1996 and sank.  In honor of the centennial of Cousteau’s birth, the Cousteau Society has announced that the restored Calypso will sail again.

Jacques Cousteau’s ship sails again
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Humpback Whale Washes Ashore on New York’s Jones Beach

Posted on by June 11, 2010

A 25 foot long baby humpback whale washed ashore on Jones Beach, on Long Island, New York yesterday morning.  There were no immediate signs of injury.  A necropsy will be performed today to determine what killed the whale.  In April, another baby humpback died when it was stranded on a beach in East Hampton,  Long Island.

Beached whale found near Long Island

Abby Sunderland Located Alive Aboard Disabled Sailboat

Posted on by June 11, 2010

Abby Sunderland has been contacted by rescuers who report that she is alive and uninjured aboard her sailboat Wild Eyes in the Indian Ocean.    The sail boat is afloat but has been variously reported as having been dis-masted and to have lost its keel.   The boat is said to be adrift in ocean waves which have been reported to be over 30 feet.  Three rescue ships are on their way to her reported position. The first is expected to arrive in roughly 24 hours.

Teenage round-the-world sailor Abby Sunderland found alive
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Abby Sunderland Feared Lost at Sea

Posted on by June 10, 2010

Abby Sunderland

The story is still developing, but there are serious concerns for the 16 year old solo sailor.

Abby Sunderland Feared Lost at Sea

Abby Sunderland, 16, who is attempting to become the youngest sailor ever to circumnavigate the globe, was feared lost at sea today after her crew lost contact with her boat.
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Delaware Bay Days – June 12 & 13 Bivalve, Port Norris & Mauricetown NJ

Posted on by June 10, 2010

From the Bayshore Discovery Project:

Delaware Bay Days, the free two-day folklife festival celebrating the Bay and the Bayshore region, returns June 12 & 13 with events in Bivalve, Port Norris and Mauricetown, NJ, with a schedule featuring new activities as well as old favorites. Like last year, Saturday’s activities are in Bivalve while Sunday’s will be held at Lake Audrey in Mauricetown. Festival hours are Saturday from 11am-7pm, Sunday from 12-5pm.
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Beachcomber stumbles upon historical shipwreck

Posted on by June 14, 2010

A beachcomber found the wreck of a ship uncovered by winter gales on  a beach in North Carolina.   Originally though to the an 18th century Royal Navy ship, the wreck has now been identified as dating from the 1600s, making it the oldest wreck found on the North Carolina Coast.

Beachcomber stumbles upon historic shipwreck
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Solar Power ‘Sets Sail’ In Shanghai

Posted on by June 9, 2010

Last week at the Shanghai World Expo, the SunTech Guosheng solarsailor, an innovative 31.5 meter solar-powered passenger vessel sailed on its maiden voyage on the Huangpu River.  The vessels is owned by Suntech Power Holdings, the world’s largest producer of crystalline silicon solar panels, using designs and technology developed by Australia-based Solar Sailor.  The rigid solar panels also serve as sails.   Capable of carrying carry 180 passengers, the Suntech Guosheng solarsailor is the largest hybrid solar vessel built to date.

Solar Power ‘Sets Sail’ In Shanghai

SS Normandie’s Steam Whistle Blows Again at the Seaport

Posted on by June 8, 2010

PHOTO CREDIT DNAinfo/Julie Shapiro

Last Thursday, the mellifluous blast of the SS Normandie‘s steam whistle once gain reverberated across the piers of the South Street Seaport in New York.   The blowing of the steam whistle celebrated the anniversary of the arrival of French luxury liner to New York seventy five years ago.   A new exhibit at the South Street Seaport Museum also celebrates the grand old ship – DecoDence: Legendary Interiors and Illustrious Travelers Aboard the SS Normandie.
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Happy World Ocean Day – But How Should We Be Celebrating ?

Posted on by June 8, 2010

One fish, two fish, dead fish, no fish?

Today is the second annual celebration of World Ocean Day!  The only thing that is unclear to me is what and how we should be celebrating.  From the World Oceans’ Day website:

“In 2009 The Ocean Project started an annual tradition associated with World Oceans Day. We launched “Wear Blue and Tell Two” as a new way of celebrating our world’s ocean on June 8th.

The main idea behind “Wear Blue and Tell Two” is to have people associate the color blue with World Oceans Day each year. We also are interested in helping each person multiply their positive reach by telling friends or colleagues two interesting facts about the ocean or ways one can take take personal action to help.”
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Women on Subs – Not all that New

Posted on by June 7, 2010

Norway's Solveig Krey, the world's first female submarine commander

Julian Stockwin made a comment on Twitter this morning (what is the past tense of “to tweet?” by the way) regarding women on submarines.  He noted that Norway has had women serving on submarines for decades.   Indeed, the US will be at least the sixth country to allow women to serve in the Silent Service.  Norway was the first in 1985, followed by Denmark in in 1988 and Sweden in 1989. Australia followed suit in 1999 while Germany and Canada allowed women onboard in 2001 and 2002 respectively.  Spain also allows women to serve aboard subs, which does pose a new range of challenges.
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1982 Maine Built Schooner Rachel B. Jackson for Sale on E-Bay

Posted on by June 7, 2010

The schooner Rachel B. Jackson was on sale on E-Bay this morning.   The minimum bid was $175,000 with a “Buy it Now” price of $225,000.    The bidding ended at around 8:00 this morning EST without any bids having been made.   The schooner is described on her website:

The Rachel B. Jackson was built in Maine in 1982 and is a working replica of an 1890s coastal schooner. Her sturdily built mahogany planking, oak frames, pine decks, shining brass fittings and exotic wood cabinetry recall the workmanship of days gone by.
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The Saga of Robert Falcon Scott – Complex and Controversial

Posted on by June 6, 2010

British explorer Robert Falcon Scott was born today in 1868.  He died, along with his four companions, on the way back from the South Pole in 1912.   They had successfully reached the pole, only to learn that they had been beaten by Roald Amundsen’s Norwegian expedition.

Scott’s legacy has been marked by controversy. Long hailed as a hero, in recent years, some have portrayed him as a bungler.   The Scott expedition ended in tragedy while Amundsen arrived first and returned safely, without losing a man.  Nevertheless, Amundsen is largely forgotten and Scott still fascinates the public.  Two new exhibitions opened yesterday which feature Scott’s ill-fated expedition.   Edward Rothstein writes in his review of an exhibition, Race to the End of the Earth, which opened yesterday at the American Museum of Natural History, in New York:
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Pelicans, Back From Brink of Extinction, Face Oil Threat

Posted on by June 5, 2010

Though the pelican is featured on the state flag, by the early 1960s, brown pelicans had been pushed to extinction along the Louisiana Gulf Coast by DDT and other pesticides. In 1968 pelicans were reintroduction to Louisiana from colonies in Florida. Despite ups and downs,  the pelicans have slowly returned. Last year the brown pelican was taken off the endangered species list. With the Deepwater Horizon disaster, that could all change, once again.

Pelicans, Back From Brink of Extinction, Face Oil Threat
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