U.S. 7th Fleet Moves Away from Stricken Nuclear Plants; Another Reactor Explosion

Posted on by March 14, 2011

USS Ronald Reagan

The US 7th fleet has moved away from the Fukushima nuclear power plants after helicopters from the carrier Ronald Reagan were exposed to an airborne radioactive plume.  Seventeen Navy personnel are being treated for what is described as “low levels of contamination.”    Sensors aboard the carrier Ronald Reagan indicated that the ship had also been exposed to low level contamination.  The carrier group had been roughly 100 miles away from the crippled reactors and has now moved so that that it is no longer down-wind of the power plants.

17 in U.S. Navy Treated for Contamination
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Pirates on Trial – Has the Game Changed?

Posted on by March 14, 2011

The battle against piracy in the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea may be changing.   This week Japan announced that  it would try four suspected pirates being held by the US Navy after they were captured attempting to hijack the Japanese owned tanker MV Guanabara.   Recently pirates have also been charged for their crimes in courts in South Korea, Malaysia, Germany , the Netherlands and the United States.

Japan to try suspects in pirate attack
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The Power of Water – A Town Swept Away and Reactors Melting Down

Posted on by March 13, 2011

The New York Times published an article this morning, The Destructive Power of Water, where it compares the force of a ten meter high tsunami wave to “a hundred tanks coming across you. Even though it’s a fluid, it operates like a solid hammer.”    Fortunately, Japan has some of the strictest building codes in the world, specifically intended to save lives during earthquakes. Nothing, however can withstand the force of a tsunami.
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A Hawaiian Tsunami – National Geographic Simulation

Posted on by March 12, 2011

The Hawaiian islands and the West Coast of the United States suffered relatively minor damage in Friday’s tsunami.   What would a tsunami created by a major eruption of Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano be like?  National Geographic presents  a chilling simulation.  Thanks to Linda Collison for posting this on Facebook.

Ultimate Tsunami – Honolulu Hawaii
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Aftermath of the Tsunami – Explosion at Nuclear Power Plant, Five Reactors at Risk

Posted on by March 12, 2011

Explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi No. 1 reactor

Friday’s 8.9 magnitude earthquake and 10-meter high tsunami on the  coast of northeast Japan devastated cities and villages, killing as many as 1,300.   It also significantly damaged at least five nuclear reactors at two power plants. Yesterday afternoon, a massive explosion rocked the Fukushima Daiichi No. 1 reactor, causing a portion of a building to crumble, and injuring four workers.  Radiation is now leaking from the reactor which is at risk of a melt-down.

Explosion rocks Japanese nuclear power plant; 5 reactors in peril
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32nd Annual Snow Row at the Hull Lifesaving Museum

Posted on by March 11, 2011

The Hull Lifesaving Museum near Boston is sponsoring their 32nd Annual “Snow Row” this weekend. Festivities begin with the annual “Snow Ball” this evening at the Clarion Nantasket Beach Resort and Conference Center, followed by Saturday’s race at the Windmill Point Boathouse, Hull.

32nd Annual Snow Row
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Huge 8.9 Earthquake off Japan Triggers Tsunami , Tsunami Warnings in Hawaii and USS West Coast

Posted on by March 11, 2011

Photo: Kyodo News, via Associated Press

The largest earthquake in Japanese recorded history, 8.9 on the Richter scale, which struck about 80 miles offshore, has triggered devastating tsunami waves on the  coast of northeast Japan.   Tsunami warnings have gone up in at least 50 countries and territories, including Hawaii and the US West Coast.

Huge Earthquake Triggers Tsunami Off Japan’s Coast
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The Oldest Albatross, a Mother at 60!

Posted on by March 10, 2011

The U.S. Geological Survey press release began:  “The oldest known U.S. wild bird – a coyly conservative 60 — is a new mother.”

Why the Albatross Is Our Albatross

Last month, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist spotted this Laysan albatross on the world’s most remote coral atoll, smack in the middle of the Pacific near Hawaii. The bird was first tagged by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in 1956, when she was estimated to be about five years old. That means today, she’s at least 60 — the oldest known living wild bird in the U.S.
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Maersk Alabama Attacked for the Third Time – Will Armed Guards on Merchant Ships Become the Norm?

Posted on by March 10, 2011

This week the Maersk Alabama was attacked by pirates for the third time in the last two years.    In April of 2009, pirates boarded the Maersk containership and took her captain, Richard Phillips, hostage.  He was later rescued when Navy sharpshooters killed the pirates who were holding him.  Then in November of 2009, another group of pirates attacked the ship, but were driven off by armed guards aboard the ship.    This week, fire from armed personnel on the ship also drove off the pirates.

Pirates target the Maersk Alabama again
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Red Sea Piracy may be going Multinational

Posted on by March 9, 2011

Piracy in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean can be wildly profitable and is relatively risk free.   If a pirate is caught by any of the multinational naval task force, chances are that they will simply let the pirate go free.   So I suppose it isn’t surprising that that not only has the scope of piracy expanded to encompass the Indian Oceans and Arabia Sea, but now it also appears that the pool of pirates is also becoming multi-national.  In addition to Somalis,  Yemenis are also getting into the act.

Red Sea piracy may be going multinational – U.S.
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On International Women’s Day – An interview with Rescue Swimmer Sarah Faulkner

Posted on by July 15, 2020

Today is International Women’s Day.  Indeed, it is the 100th Anniversary of the first International  Women’s Day in 1911.   We have followed with interest the women who have progressively stepped up to serve in jobs that not too long ago were reserved solely for men –  whether on submarines,  the bridge of a cruise ship,  from the engine room flat to the bridge of a research vessel, or rowing alone across a mighty ocean.   Now in honor of International  Women’s Day, here is an interview with US Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer Petty Officer Second Class Sara Faulkner. She is one of 300 rescue swimmers in the Coast Guard and one of only four women.

She’ll drop in and save your life
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New Owner Sought for Cruiser Olympia

Posted on by March 8, 2011

Yesterday the Independence Seaport Museum posted a “NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF TRANSFER APPLICATION PROCESS FOR CRUISER, OLYMPIA” to formally begin the process of seeking a new owner for the historic cruiser launched in 1892.  From the notice:

The Olympia, Admiral Dewey’s flagship and once the most celebrated, state-of-the art naval vessel afloat, will be scrapped or scuttled unless a new owner can be found. In terms of historic value, the National Historic Landmark Olympia has been equated to the USS Constitution and the Constellation as one of the most important vessels in U.S. Naval history. The ship straddles the shift between the age of sail and the age of steel, and marks the launch of the modern steel Navy. Deferred maintenance has reached a critical stage and the ship requires $2-5 million of immediate stabilization. A further estimated $10-20 million will be required for dry-dock and restoration.
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