Visitor Center News

Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) Carlos Del Toro announced that a future John Lewis-class oiler, T-AO 205-class, will be named after American abolitionist and social activist Harriet Tubman.SECNAV Del Toro made the announcement during an Emancipation Celebration at Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center in Church Creek, Md. National Park Service Director Chuck Sams, who is also a U.S. Navy veteran, joined Secretary Del Toro for the announcement at the park.The future…

The Great Lakes' 2023 shipping season will commence on March 25 with the opening of the Poe Lock at 12:01 a.m., the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District announced.The operating season is fixed by federal regulation and driven in part by the feasibility of vessels operating in typical Great Lakes ice conditions.The Poe Lock closed January 16 to undergo critical repairs and maintenance during the 10 week-long winter shutdown. Maintenance crews performed a variety of critical tasks on the Poe Lock…

The 400-MW Rampion offshore wind farm off the Sussex coast in the UK has been officially opened, said German energy company E.on SE. The offshore wind farm now generating enough green electricity for around 350,000 UK homes setting a new power record in the country.Three years of construction officially came to an end on Saturday (November 29) at a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Rampion offshore wind farm, the first wind farm off the UK's south coast.Named after the county flower of Sussex, the offshore wind farm, over the next 25 years, will make an important contribution to meeting the UK's climate targets.After a three-year construction schedule involving a workforce of around 750 at peak times, all 116 turbines were put into operation in spring.

U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft delivered the 2016 State of the Coast Guard Address at U.S. Capitol Visitor Center Congressional Auditorium Tuesday. This was Adm. Zukunft’s second State of the Coast Guard Address and he welcomed the opportunity to recognize Service accomplishments, reinforce his strategic intent and provide direction for the coming year. "Now, on behalf of the 88,000 women and men of the Coast Guard, I profoundly thank the 114th Congress and this Administration for delivering an authorization bill along with the largest acquisition budget in Coast Guard history,” stated Zukunft. The commandant’s speech focused on how the budget is being driven by strategy and how the budget will support his priorities to invest in the 21st century Coast Guard…

To take advantage of the global increase in on-board touring holidays, the Firth of Forth is planning a new cruise ship terminal. Developers hope to secure permission for the first purpose-built terminal on the Scottish mainland at site of the decommissioned Cockenzie power station on the estuary’s south bank, east of Edinburgh. Developers say that the terminal would be able to accommodate modern liners that are unable to dock further up the Firth of Forth because of their height and width. It is estimated that Cockenzie could accommodate at least 200 cruise liners a year, bringing around 500,000 visitors to Scotland. At present only Orkney has a purpose-built terminal for cruise ships in Scotland, although many liners call into Scottish ports around the country.

The Aircraft Carrier Alliance (ACA), which is building HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales in shipyards across the U.K., has opened a visitor center in Rosyth Dockyard. The facility, which has a view of both HMS Queen Elizabeth across the non-tidal basin and the Forth bridges behind it, has been created to allow small groups of visitors to learn more about the Alliance and the construction of the two largest warships ever built for the Royal Navy. Featuring an upstairs…

Dec. 7, 1941 is a day that America will never forget. Claiming more than 2,400 American lives, 21 ships sunk or damaged, and more than 300 aircraft lost, the attack on Pearl Harbor goes down as one of the worst attacks on American soil. The Japanese attack came in two waves. During the first wave, six Japanese carriers launched 181 planes carrying torpedo bombers, dive bombers, horizontal bombers and fighters. Only 30 minutes later 170 more aircraft launched their attack on the Harbor. The U.S. was able to repair all but three of the ships sunk or damaged. The three ships that were beyond repair were USS Arizona (BB-39), USS Oklahoma (BB-37), and USS Utah (AG-16). This year marks the 73rd anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Harbor Commission Approves Environmental Impact Report, Lease Agreement; Historic Battleship Plans to Open to Public July 7. The Los Angeles Harbor Commission today voted unanimously to create a new home for the historic battleship, the USS IOWA, in a prime location along the LA Waterfront at the Port of Los Angeles. In separate actions, The Harbor Commission approved the lease agreement and an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) necessary to bring the World War II icon to the LA Waterfront  where it will be converted to an interactive naval museum and living memorial.

LOS ANGELES — The Coast Guard announces its National Preparedness Response Exercise Program (NPREP) pre-exercise Public Outreach events to be held Sept. 13, 2011 in Ventura, Calif., free of charge. Government and Industry experts will be facilitating seminars on three topics of interest: Deepwater Horizon Response, Oiled Wildlife Care Network, and Sensitive Sites Strategy, from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. Static displays such as communications trailers, a HASS-like boat, Patch technology for vessels, off-shore deployment of a Vessel of Opportunity Skimming System (VOSS) from Coast Guard Cutter George Cobb, and others, will be available for viewing from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. The seminars and displays will be held at Robert J.

Naval Station Pearl Harbor and the National Park Service activated the first USS Arizona Memorial biodiesel ferry boat #39-1 John W. Finn during a ceremony at the USS Arizona Memorial and Visitor Center April 7. The John W. Finn is the first of five new boats that will ultimately replace the existing 20-year old U.S. Navy-operated tour boats that transport 1.5 million visitors per year to and from the memorial. "I think the time has come when people of the world are beginning…

More than 100 people at the Miraflores Locks as Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance awarded upon the Department of Security and Environment's Environmental Division of the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) the coveted ISO 14001 certification. Juan Héctor Diaz, director of the Department of Security and Environment, accepted the certification at a ceremony at the Miraflores Locks Visitor's Center. Participants included the Academy for Environmental Education Development (AED), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), Panama Ministry of Health (MINSA), Panama National Environment Authority (ANAM) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).