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Research Ship News

05 Jan 2024

NOAA Hosts GOM Hiring Events for Research Ship Jobs

Professional mariners deploy equipment used for shark research on NOAA Ship Oregon II. (NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations/ENS Justin Weeks)

NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations will hold two hiring events in the Gulf Coast region to recruit professional mariners to work aboard NOAA’s ocean research ships. The first event will be in Mobile, Alabama on Jan. 23 and the second is in New Orleans on Jan. 25.NOAA operates a fleet of 15 hydrographic survey, oceanographic research and fisheries survey vessels. NOAA ships operate in the U.S. and around the world. The ships are run by a combination of NOAA commissioned officers…

02 Nov 2023

Hiring Event in Norfolk for NOAA Research Ship Jobs

Professional mariners deploy equipment used to measure the seawater’s salinity, temperature and depth from NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker. (NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations/Maideline Sanchez)

NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations will hold a hiring event in Norfolk, Virginia to recruit professional mariners to work aboard NOAA’s ocean research ships. The event will be held on Nov. 15 at the NOAA Marine Operations Center - Atlantic. NOAA operates a fleet of 15 hydrographic survey, oceanographic research and fisheries survey vessels. NOAA ships operate in the U.S. and around the world. The ships are run by a combination of NOAA commissioned officers and civilian professional mariners.

07 Aug 2023

RRS Sir David Attenborough Gearing Up for First Antarctic Science Cruise

(Photo: British Antarctic Survey)

Britain's high-tech polar research ship RRS Sir David Attenborough is gearing up for its first Antarctic science cruise.Over the coming weeks, the crew and scientists on board the vessel will be carrying out a range of trials to test the ship's science equipment in both deep and shallow water around the Scottish coast. Among the tech to be tested are the vessel's moonpool, coring equipment and the ship’s workboat Erebus, all of which are critical elements of upcoming science missions.Erebus will be put through its paces with new equipment…

12 Jul 2023

Keel Laid for New German Research Ship

(Photo: Meyer Group)

The Meyer Group's Neptun Werft officially laid the keel for the new German research vessel Meteor IV during a ceremony at the Rostock, Germany shipyard.The Meyer Group is building the research vessel together with the Lower Saxony shipyard Fassmer on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research."Only two months after the burning start, the assembly of the individual components for the Meteor IV is now beginning. At our shipyards in Rostock and Papenburg, and together with Fassmer Werft…

22 Jun 2023

Titanic Sub Search: Debris Field Found, Oxygen Feared to Have Run Out

(File photo: OceanGate Expeditions)

The desperate search for a missing submersible near the wreck of the Titanic entered a critical juncture on Thursday when air was expected to run out for the five people aboard, but officials vowed to continue scouring the remote North Atlantic.A remotely operated vehicle deployed from a Canadian vessel to the ocean floor discovered a "debris field" near the Titanic, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Thursday morning on Twitter, adding that experts were "evaluating the information."Another…

21 Jun 2023

Missing Titanic Submersible Update: Searchers Detect Subsea Sounds

Copyright chocolatefather/AdobeStock

Search teams detected underwater sounds while scanning the North Atlantic for a tourist submersible that vanished with five people aboard during a deep-sea voyage to the century-old wreck of the Titanic, the U.S. Coast Guard said early on Wednesday.The detection of the sounds by Canadian aircraft on Tuesday, day three of the search, was reported by the Coast Guard as the clock ticked down to the last 24 hours of the missing craft's presumed oxygen supply.Robotic undersea search operations were diverted to the area where the sounds seemed to originate…

09 Jun 2023

China's Largest Naval Training Ship Heads for Philippines in 'Friendly' Tour

File photo - ©Tyg728/Wikimedia Commons - CC BY-SA 4.0

China's largest naval training ship sailed for the Philippines on Friday, its last stop of a regional "friendly" tour, amid growing unease over Chinese maritime activities in the South China Sea.The giant training vessel, Qijiguang, bigger than a typical destroyer, left Brunei on Thursday for the Philippines as part of an around 40-day trip which has included stops in Vietnam and Thailand before Brunei.At the end of its trip, Qijiguang and its crew of 476 navy students and officers would have passed through the Yellow Sea…

26 May 2023

Chinese Ships Ignore Vietnam Demand to Leave Area Close to Russian-run Offshore Gas Fields

A Chinese research ship and five escort vessels were in Vietnam's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) on Friday, close to gas blocks operated by Russian firms in the South China Sea, a day after Vietnam urged the ships to leave.The Chinese vessel Xiang Yang Hong 10 began operating in Vietnam's EEZ on May 7, representing the most significant incursion since 2019, according to Ray Powell, who leads Stanford University's Project Myoushu on the South China Sea.He said China's conduct and Vietnam's reaction were a "worrying escalation."China claims most of the energy-rich waters of the South China Sea, including areas that are within Vietnam's EEZ. The 2019 standoff lasted for more than three months and largely targeted a block then operated by Russian state oil firm Rosneft ROSN.MM.

10 May 2023

Cluster of Chinese Vessels Spotted Near Russian Rig Off Vietnam

© Photographer JH / Adobe Stock

A Chinese research vessel flanked by coast guard and nearly a dozen boats on Wednesday entered a gas block operated by Russian and Vietnamese state firms, two monitoring groups said, another potential flashpoint in the South China Sea.It follows a pattern of assertive moves of late by Beijing in its neighbors' exclusive economic zones (EEZ), as it presses its claim to sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, testing the United States and its allies at a time of heightened regional tension.Strong relations between Russia and China are a major factor supporting global stability…

27 Apr 2023

$56m Allocated to Refurbish Three British Research Ships

Image credit Brian Donovan

The National Oceanography Center (NOC) is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the scientific research ship RRS Discovery’s predecessor being designated as a Royal Research Ship (RRS), while the modern RRS Discovery becomes the first Research Vessel to be refitted at Babcock’s Rosyth facility, 35 miles away from the birthplace of the original vessel in Dundee.To mark this 100th anniversary, the current RRS Discovery will also join its ancestral inspiration, the original RRS Discovery in Dundee fromJune 2-4…

03 Mar 2023

Schmidt's Newly Refitted Research Vessel Falkor (too) Launched

(Photo: Schmidt Ocean Institute)

Schmidt Ocean Institute announced that its newly refitted research vessel has been launched and is ready to be used by scientists worldwide to push the frontiers of deep sea expedition.Funded by Schmidt Ocean Institute founders Eric and Wendy Schmidt, the 110-meter global-class research ship, Falkor (too), was refit at Freire Shipyard in Vigo, Spain, with sea trials taking place off Puerto Rico. It will now embark on a series of expeditions and be available to scientists and technologists globally at no cost in exchange for making their research and discoveries publicly available.

09 Feb 2023

The U.S. Navy Needs More Ships, Encourages Industry to "Pick up the Pace"

Bryce Woolston cleans up welds on the Virginia-class attack submarine USS Delaware (SSN 791) at HII Newport News Shipbuilding. (HII photo by Chris Oxley)

The demand for warships is strong, and the Navy continues to receive support from the Congress to build more ships. The Navy is working to achieve a fleet of about 355 ships, plus a fleet of about 150 unmanned vesselsBut to achieve something close to that goal requires more than demand, and even more than money. For one thing, it requires an industrial base that can build, repair and sustain that fleet.While Navy leadership acknowledges the challenges of a stressed supply chain…

07 Oct 2022

Molten Salt Reactors: Maritime’s Nuclear Option

Multipurpose: an illustration of Ulstein International’s nuclear-powered Thor showing its ship-to-ship resupply boom and passenger transfer, and below a close-up of a replenishment operation. Image courtesy Ulstein International

A race is being run by nuclear scientists and ship designers. The prize? “Decarbonization’s” holy grail — believed to be a “small” thorium-fueled, molten-salt rector’s unlimited power to propel sea trade. At the same time, a recently revived discussion among leading marine-nuclear thinkers revolves now around how to put an ultra-modern, as-yet non-existent marine reactor aboard a modern commercial vessel. As with nuclear power generally, shipborne reactors produce national discussion first, then discovery.

16 Jun 2022

Keel Laid for NOAA’s New Oceanographic Research Ship

A welder from Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors, LLC, welds the initials of the Oceanographer's sponsor, Linda Kwok Schatz, wife of U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii, onto a steel plate that will be incorporated into the ship. (Photo: NOAA)

Houma, La. shipbuilder Thoma-Sea Marine Constructors hosted a keel-laying ceremony for NOAA’s newest oceanographic research ship, Oceanographer.“Today’s keel-laying ceremony marks a major step forward both in the construction of Oceanographer and the revitalization of NOAA’s ship fleet,” said Rear Adm. Nancy Hann, director of NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO) and the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps.Oceanographer is one of two ships being built for NOAA by TMC to support a variety of missions…

02 Aug 2021

Eye on the Navy: Navy extends Life for Research Ships, but Says Farewell to FLIP

Tugs guide the Department of the Navy's Floating Instrument Platform (FLIP) from her berth at the Nimitz Marine Facility in Point Loma, Calif. (U.S. Navy photo by John F. Williams/Released)

The U.S. Navy’s three Global class oceanographic research ships (AGORs) have received a new lease on life. The ships-- R/V Thomas G. Thompson (AGOR 23), R/V Roger Revelle (AGOR 24) and R/V Atlantis (AGOR 25)-- which entered service between 1991 and 1998--were built with 30-year expected service lives. Thanks to extensive overhauls on all three they have been returned to service with another 15 years of useful service.AGOR 23 is operated by the University of Washington; AGOR 24 is operated by Scripps Institution of Oceanography…

06 Jul 2021

MSF Denounces Seizure of Migrant Rescue Vessel in Italy

French medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said on Monday an MSF vessel that rescued hundreds of migrants and refugees in the Mediterranean last month has been detained in Italy, suggesting the seizure was politically motivated.Thousands of migrants embark each year on the crossing, often departing in small, inflatable boats from Libya with hopes of reaching Europe.So far this year, 866 migrant deaths have been recorded in the Mediterranean, according to the U.N. migration agency. Most of them, 723, died on the central Mediterranean route where the MSF vessel was operating.MSF’s research ship, the Geo Barents, was seized on July 2 in Augusta…

29 Jun 2021

URI Unveils Name of New Research Vessel

An artist's rendering of R/V Narragansett Dawn. (Courtesy Glosten Associates)

The National Science Foundation’s new Regional Class Research Vessel that will soon call the University of Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay Campus home has a name: Narragansett Dawn.Graduate School of Oceanography Dean Paula S. Bontempi announced the name of the new $125 million vessel after a nationwide competition and approval from the NSF.“Narragansett Dawn acknowledges the Indigenous peoples’ histories, ancestors, and perseverance in our communities today,” said URI President David M. Dooley.

20 Apr 2021

Glosten to Design, Freire Shipyard to Build MBARI's New Research Vessel

Photo courtesy Glosten © 2021 MBARI

The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) is embarking on a new chapter in its ocean research with the construction of a state-of-the-art ship, a vessel named in honor of MBARI’s founder, David Packard. The R/V David Packard will be capable of accommodating diverse expeditions in Monterey Bay and beyond to further the institute’s mission to explore and understand our changing ocean.It will measure 50 x 12.8 m with a 3.7 m draft, designed to  support a crew of 12, plus a science crew of 18.

29 Mar 2021

Seaspan Shipyards Begins Building Canada's New Research Ship

The Canadian Coast Guard’s Heather McDonald cuts the first steel at Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyard, marking the start of construction of Canada’s most modern science research ship. (Photo: Seaspan Shipyards)

Canadian shipbuilder Seaspan Shipyards announced on Monday it has cut steel and started full-rate construction of the newest oceanographic science research vessel for the Canadian Coast Guard and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.The 88-meter Offshore Oceanographic Science Vessel (OOSV) is being built under Canada's National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS) at Seaspan’s multi-program Vancouver Shipyard concurrently with the first Joint Support Ship (JSS) for the Royal Canadian Navy.The OOSV will support oceanographic…

26 Mar 2021

GC Rieber Delivers Polar Queen to Schmidt Ocean Institute

Polar Queen/Credit: GC Rieber Shipping

Norwegian offshore vessel owner GC Rieber Shipping has delivered the Polar Queen vessel to new owners Schmidt Ocean Institute. The company announced the sale of the IMR vessel in February."The vessel has today been delivered to the new owner," GC Rieber Shipping said in a brief statement on Tuesday, without disclosing the name of the buyer. U.S.-based Schmidt Ocean Institute has said it acquired the vessel—now renamed Falkor (too)—for use as an oceanographic research ship.The Polar Queen is an IMR / walk-to-work vessel, built at Freire Shipyard in 2011.

16 Mar 2021

Two Injured in RRS Sir David Attenborough Lifeboat Drill

(Photo: Rich Turner / BAS)

The UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch has opened an investigation into a lifeboat drill accident that injured two crew members from the new polar research ship RRS David Attenborough. The two crewmembers suffered minor injuries after a lifeboat rolled onto its side and fell overboard during a launching drill in Loch Buie, on Scotland's east coast, on March 5, the MAIB said.RRS Sir David Attenborough—still known to some as Boaty McBoatface, the top vote getter in an online poll to name the vessel in 2016—was built by U.K.

15 Mar 2021

RSS Sir David Attenborough Delivered to LR Class

(Photo: Lloyd's Register)

Britain’s new polar research ship, the RSS Sir David Attenborough, has been formally presented with Lloyd's Register (LR) certification after a four-year-long construction period, the classification society said.The high-profile vessel, the U.K.’s largest commercial newbuild for over 30 years, was delivered to Natural Environment Research Council and British Antarctic Survey (BAS) by Cammell Laird Shipbuilders. BAS undertake vital research in the polar regions, leading in polar science and polar operations…

22 Oct 2020

RRS Sir David Attenborough Starts Sea Trials

(Photo: Cammell Laird )

The U.K.’s most advanced polar research ship RRS Sir David Attenborough left Cammell Laird shipyard Wednesday to commence two weeks of technical sea trials ahead of scheduled delivery to the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) in November.“Although the vessel’s construction is now complete, trials are a critical and final part of the program as they allow our engineers and the ship’s crew to put the vessel through its paces at sea,” said Linton Roberts, Director of Operations at Cammell Laird.

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