Two Beluga Whales Rescued From Ukraine Arrive in Spain

Posted on by June 23, 2024

CNN reports that two beluga whales have been rescued from the besieged city of Kharkiv in Ukraine and taken to an aquarium in Valencia, Spain, in a complex operation.

A multinational team involving marine mammal care experts from Oceanogràfic de Valencia, the largest oceanarium in Europe; Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta; and SeaWorld were involved in the high-risk journey.

The pair of belugas – a 15-year-old male named Plombir and a 14-year-old female called Miranda – arrived in “delicate health” Tuesday evening after a “grueling journey,” according to Georgia Aquarium.

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Cruise Ship Insignia Rescues 68 Migrants Adrift off the Spanish Canary Islands

Posted on by June 22, 2024

The cruise ship Insignia rescued 68 migrants adrift off the Spanish Canary Islands on Wednesday, Spain’s maritime rescue agency said in a statement on X. 

The bulk carrier Philipp Oldendorff spotted the migrant boat adrift roughly 440 nautical miles, or about 815 km, south of Tenerife, and provided first aid to those affected while the Insignia was sent to the area, the Salvamento Maritimo statement said. 

The 684-passenger ship, owned by Oceania Cruises, was approximately 160 days into a 180-day around-the-world voyage when it was diverted to assist in the rescue.

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Eighty Years Ago, Mulberry Harbors Battle the Storm on the Beaches of Normandy

Posted on by June 21, 2024
mulberrystorm

Mulberry harbor in the storm of June 19-22, 1944

Eighty years ago this week, during the early days of the Allied invasion of Europe, the sea would prove to be as formidable an enemy as the Germans. A storm, the worst in 80 years, came close to wiping out the Mulberrys — the two portable harbors built at Normandy to support the invasion. An updated repost.

One of the challenges of invading Europe over the Normandy beaches in World War II was that there were no convenient harbors to unload additional men and supplies. British engineers came up with the idea of fabricating modular docks to create temporary harbors. They were called Mulberry harbors, a name chosen at random.

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Scientists Decoding Sperm Whale Language, Appears Closer to Human Communication Than Realized

Posted on by June 20, 2024

Photo: Amanda Cotton/Project CETI

Recently, researchers have used machine learning to decode a “sperm whale phonetic alphabet,” revealing sophisticated structures in sperm whale communication akin to human phonetics and communication systems in other animal species. 

For centuries, sailors have heard the sounds made by whales, reverberating through the hulls of wooden ships. Arctic whalers dubbed beluga whales the “canaries of the seas” for their clicks, chirps, and whistles.  Nevertheless, it was long thought that whale noises were nothing more than expressive sounds or calls. 

Then, over the last half-century, scientists began to study the haunting whale song of humpbacks, as well as the varied vocalizations of other whale species.   

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Happy Juneteenth — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship

Posted on by June 19, 2024

USS Cornubia, ex Lady Davis

Happy Juneteenth! Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth is also the newest Federal holiday. The legislation was signed into law by President Biden in 2020. The holiday commemorates when emancipation arrived in Galveston, Texas by steamship, 159 years ago today. Here is an updated repost. 

Although the surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia signaled the end of the nation’s Civil War on April 9, 1865, emancipation did not arrive in Texas until two ex-Confederate steamships sailed into Galveston Harbor two months later. 

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The Composite Clipper Ship City of Adelaide Moves to Final Home in Port Adelaide

Posted on by June 18, 2024

Sometimes the final miles can take the longest to travel. A full decade after being carried by heavy-lift ship over 10,000 nautical miles from Scotland to her namesake port city, City of Adelaide, the oldest surviving composite clipper ship in the world, has finally been moved ashore to its final berth at Dock Two at Port Adelaide. The 160-year-old clipper ship will become the centerpiece of a proposed new maritime heritage precinct, showcasing the Port’s colorful and important role in the development of South Australia.

More than 250,000 Australians can trace their ancestry through the clipper ship as it worked the Britain-Adelaide migrant route.

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Sperm Whale Asks Divers For Help Removing Nets & Trash Tangled In Its Mouth

Posted on by June 17, 2024

A heartwarming story for a Monday.  Here is a short video of a sperm whale in the Indian Ocean that approached a group of divers, seemingly asking for help.

The whale swam directly up to them, mouth agape and dragging all sorts of detritus caught in its jaw. When the diver cautiously approached it, it left its mouth open and allowed her to pluck the tangled pile out, piece by piece.

Afterwards, the whale remained in the area for a while, staying at the surface with the divers as though it was saying thank you. Before it disappeared into the depths again, the divers were treated to a photoshoot of a lifetime and a memory that will last forever.

Woman uses her bare hands to save starving whale

Historic Schooner Bowdoin Bound Back to the Arctic

Posted on by June 16, 2024

The schooner Bowdoin, built for Arctic exploration in 1921, is headed for the Arctic for the first time since 2008, more than 100 years since her first such expedition.  The schooner, owned by Maine Maritime Academy (MMA), is sailed by a professional crew of 6 and 10 MMA students on a voyage from Maine to Greenland, and continuing beyond 70° North.

The 72′ long schooner set sail from Castine, Maine on May 24, and has called on Boothbay Harbor, Maine, St. John’s, Newfoundland. She is now in Nuuk, Greenland and will continue northward, expecting to cross the Arctic Circle around June 19th, on her way to port calls in Sisimuit and Oqatsut, Greenland before returning to Castine.

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Search For Mystery Artist Behind HMS Raleigh Training Base Mural

Posted on by June 15, 2024

A striking painting of the Falklands War has prompted a search to find the artist behind it.

Recently, Jon Rickman-Dawson, facilities manager for HMS Raleigh, a training establishment for new recruits to the Royal Navy, discovered an unusual mural hidden away in one of the classrooms.

The mural is 20 feet long by six tall and is thought to depict the Bluff Cove air attacks during the Falklands War, in June 1982. The attacks saw the bombing of the RFA Sir Galahad, which was the greatest loss of British life throughout the conflict.  The painting has been described as looking like the darkest scene from a graphic fantasy novel but it actually depicts one of the bleakest moments in recent naval history.

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Congratulations to Hirotsugu Kimura, Youngest Japanese to Circumnavigate Solo Non-Stop

Posted on by June 14, 2024

Photo: Kyodo News helicopter

Japan Today reports that 24 year old, Hirotsugu Kimura, has become the youngest Japanese to complete a solo voyage around the world on a sailboat without making any port calls or receiving supplies; breaking a thirty-year-old record.

Kimura, a former Maritime Self-Defense Force member, reached his goal off Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, after 231 days. This was his second attempt after one in 2022 was marred by mechanical failure.

Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, Kimura said the reality of his achievement was slowly setting in. “My sense of happiness and relief at achieving my goal is getting stronger,” he said.

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In Show of Force, Russian Warships Arrive In Havana, Cuba

Posted on by June 13, 2024

On Wednesday four Russian naval vessels; a nuclear-powered submarine, a frigate, an oil tanker, and a rescue tug; arrived in Cuba for military drills.

The vessels’ visit has been seen as a show of force amid Moscow’s tensions with the West over the war in Ukraine, according to the BBC. The ships anchored in Havana Bay – some 90 miles (145km) from the US state of Florida.

Russia’s defence ministry says the Admiral Gorshkov frigate and the Kazan submarine both can carry advanced weapons, including hypersonic missiles Zircon. They earlier conducted missile drills in the Atlantic.

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The Wreck of Shackleton’s “Last Ship” Quest Discovered

Posted on by June 12, 2024

A sonar image of the Quest. It went down on 5 May 1962

The wreck of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s “last ship” Quest has been discovered on the seafloor off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.

When I first read the news, I did a double-take. Just over two years ago, the wreck of Shackleton’s “lost ship,” Endurance, was discovered, after being trapped in pack ice and sinking in the Weddell Sea, beneath the Larsen C ice shelf, off Antarctica on November  21,1915. 

So the newly discovered wreck is Shackleton’s “last ship” and not his “lost ship.” 

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One Hundred Eighty Nine Dead or Missing After Migrant Boat Capsizes Off Yemen

Posted on by June 11, 2024

Fishermen rescuing survivors

At least 49 people from the Horn of Africa have died and 140 are missing after their boat capsized off the coast of Yemen, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Among the dead were six children and 31 women. Survivors told rescuers that the vessel, carrying 260 migrants, sank on Monday in strong winds. The search continues for the missing migrants. The IOM is providing aid to 71 survivors, including six children, with eight migrants referred to hospital.

In a statement on Tuesday, IOM spokesman Mohammedali Abunajela said “this recent tragedy is another reminder of the urgent need to work together to address urgent migration challenges”.

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Three Bitten in Two Shark Attacks on Florida Gulf Coast Within Hours of Each Other

Posted on by June 10, 2024

A woman was attacked by a shark on Friday afternoon while swimming in the Gulf of Mexico near Watersound Beach in Walton County, Florida. The victim, a woman in her 40s, sustained critical injuries on her midsection and left arm, according to South Walton Fire Chief Ryan Crawford. She was transported to a local trauma center where part of her arm had to be amputated. The attack occurred around 1:20pm.

Less than two hours later, two teenage girls were waist-deep in the water near Seacrest Beach, only about four miles east of the first incident, when a shark attacked them. One girl suffered “significant injuries to the upper leg and one hand” and was taken to a trauma center. The other girl had minor injuries on her foot and was taken to a hospital, according to officials.

Two shark attacks on the same day and so geographically close together are extremely rare.

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Throttle Stuck at Full Ahead on Container Ship MSC Michigan VII in Charleston Harbor, Bridge Shutdown

Posted on by June 7, 2024

Photo: vesselfinder,com

On Wednesday morning at 11:46 a.m. the container ship MSC Michigan VII departed the North Charleston Container Terminal in Charleston, South Carolina, with its engine set to “dead slow ahead” as it moved down the Cooper River toward the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge. Instead of proceeding at a harbor speed of 6 -8 knots, however, the engine increased power to near full-ahead without warning, propelling the ship between 14 and 17  knots, and would not respond to commands.

Charleston Harbor pilot called in assistance from nearby tugboats; however, they could not reach the vessel due to the increased speed. 

The US Coast Guard was alerted to an “out of control vessel” in the Cooper River around 12:17 p.m. Wednesday, Coast Guard Sector Charleston Deputy Commander Randy Preston said. Authorities rushed to clear boaters from the vessel’s path and shut down the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge before the ship passed underneath.

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On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Remembering Andrew Jackson Higgins and the Higgins Boat

Posted on by June 6, 2024

I am aware of only one man who was praised by both Eisenhower and Hitler. A repost on the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

General Dwight David Eisenhower said “Andrew Higgins … is the man who won the war for us. … If Higgins had not designed and built those LCVPs, we never could have landed over an open beach. The whole strategy of the war would have been different.”  

Adolph Hitler referred to Andrew Higgins as the “new Noah,” though his admiration was more begrudging. On the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings, better known as D-Day, it seems worthwhile to remember Andrew Higgins and the amazing Higgins boat.

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Latest “Fat Leonard” Bribery Case Falls Apart

Posted on by June 5, 2024

A federal judge dismissed the most recent felony convictions of five retired military officers who had admitted to accepting bribes from Leonard Francis, a Malaysian contractor nicknamed “Fat Leonard,” in one of the biggest corruption scandals in Navy history.

The dismissals came at the request of the government — not the defense — citing prosecutorial errors.

Retired US Navy officers Donald Hornbeck, Robert Gorsuch and Jose Luis Sanchez, and U.S. Marine Corps Col. Enrico DeGuzman had each admitted to accepting bribes from  Francis. Following the dismissals, the retired officers pleaded guilty to a lesser misdemeanor charge of disclosing information.

The judge also dismissed the entire case against former US Navy captain Stephen Shedd. In court documents and testimony, Shedd confessed to leaking military secrets on 10 occasions for prostitutes, vacations, luxury watches, and other bribes worth $105,000.

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Navy’s Former Second-Highest-Ranking Officer Arrested, Charged with Bribery

Posted on by June 1, 2024

The Department of Justice announced yesterday the arrest of Robert P. Burke, a retired four-star Navy Admiral, on criminal charges in a bribery scheme that allegedly awarded a sole-source contract to a company in 2021 in exchange for a $500,000-a-year job and stock options. Two business executives were also arrested and charged.

Adm. Burke, 62, of Coconut Creek, Fla., faces the prospect of becoming only the second U.S. admiral to be found guilty of committing a federal crime while on active duty, after his arrest on a five-count indictment returned Thursday in U.S. District Court in Washington.
 
Burke was arrested with Yongchul “Charlie” Kim, 50, and Meghan Messenger, 47, founders of the New York-based technology services firm Next Jump, prosecutors announced.
 
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The Problem of Sailors Stranded on Abandoned Ships Has Only Gotten Worse

Posted on by May 31, 2024

Back in 2021, we posted about Mohammed Aisha, the First Officer of the MV Aman, who had been stranded on the ship for almost four years, stuck off the Egyptian coast after the ship’s owners in Bahrain faced financial difficulties. He was finally freed and flown home to Syria.

Now, there are reports in the media of Abdul Nasser Saleh who finally returned home to Egypt after spending almost a decade working without pay on the cargo ship Al-Maha, abandoned by its owner at ports along the Red Sea.

Sadly the problem of ship owners abandoning crews aboard ships has only gotten worse.  As reported by the Independent, Saleh’s plight is part of a global problem that shows no signs of abating. The United Nations has logged an increasing number of crew members abandoned by shipowners, leaving sailors aboard for months and sometimes years without pay. More than 2,000 seafarers on some 150 ships were abandoned last year.
 
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No, Offshore Wind Farms Are Not Harming Whales, But Risks Remain

Posted on by May 30, 2024

A recent article in the journal Oceanus, hosted by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), raises the question, “Are offshore wind farms harming whales?”

The short answer is “no.”

They write: A collection of seemingly grass-roots organizations claim that offshore wind projects are responsible for an uptick in whale deaths. But there’s no evidence to support their claims. Whales have been dying in larger numbers for many years, but offshore wind isn’t the reason why.

Many whale deaths go unreported because the animals don’t always wash up on shore. For those that do, a team of scientists is often quick to secure the carcass for a necropsy, which can help determine the cause of death. According to WHOI whale biologist Mark Baumgartner, offshore wind has never been found to be a contributing factor.

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