Mcmurdo News

The 157 crewmembers of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) arrived at McMurdo Station in Antarctica Monday following an 86-day transit from the United States and the cutter’s departure from its Seattle homeport Nov. 13.This deployment marks the Polar Star’s 25th journey to Antarctica supporting Operation Deep Freeze, an annual joint military service mission to resupply the United States Antarctic stations in support of the National Science Foundation, lead agency for the United States Antarctic Program.Each year…

New Zealand Navy's largest ever ship Aotearoa, built by Hyundai Heavy Industries, is on its way to New Zealand, after Hyundai held a departure ceremony in its shipyard in South Korea on Wednesday.Ordered in 2016, the $493 million Aotearoa is an Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment (AOR) vessel that will be used to support Royal New Zealand Navy’s combat operations, humanitarian relief functions, and operational and training support.The vessel is built according to the Rolls-Royce Environship concept design, with a wave-piercing bow which reduces resistance and lowers fuel burn.

The U.S. Coast Guard's sole heavy icebreaker arrived January 22 at McMurdo Station, following a 58-day transit from the United States. Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) departed its’ homeport of Seattle on November 26.This year marks the Polar Star’s 23rd journey to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze, an annual joint military service mission to resupply the United States Antarctic stations, in support of the National Science Foundation, the lead agency for the United States Antarctic Program.The 399-foot…

The Coast Guard needs a ship that can do more than just break ice; it needs a multi-mission ship to provide for the nation’s security, asserting its sovereign rights, and protecting its long-term economic interests. That ship is the Polar Security Cutter.Since Russia cashed the check in 1867 for the purchase of Alaska the U.S. has been an Arctic nation. Today, it is one of eight countries that have territorial land or seas above the Arctic Circle or in the polar region (six of those countries have Arctic Ocean coastline or an exclusive economic zone above the Arctic Circle). The U.S.

It seems the U.S. cannot do enough to fast-track the construction of its new icebreaking fleet, as the USCG announce last night that the 150-member crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star fought a fire at approximately 9 p.m. PST Feb. 10 that broke out in the ship's incinerator room about 650 miles north of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica.After initial response efforts using four fire extinguishers failed, fire crews spent almost two hours extinguishing the fire. Fire damage was contained inside the incinerator housing…

Admiral Karl L. Schultz assumed the duties as the 26th Commandant of the United States Coast Guard on June 1, 2018. He previously served from August 2016 to May 2018 as Commander, Atlantic Area where he was the operational commander for all Coast Guard missions spanning five Coast Guard Districts and 40 states. Previous operational assignments include Sector Commander in Miami, Florida, as well as command tours aboard Cutters VENTUROUS, ACACIA and FARALLON. His senior staff assignments include Chief of the Office of Congressional and Governmental Affairs; Congressional Liaison to the U.S.

The 150 crew members of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star arrived Thursday in Antarctica along with a resupply vessel during Operation Deep Freeze – a joint military service mission to resupply U.S. interests in Antarctica.Homeported in Seattle, the 42-year-old Coast Guard cutter is the United States’ only operational heavy icebreaker, and the crew is making their sixth deployment in as many years to directly support the resupply of McMurdo Station – the United States’ main…

Maritime Reporter & Engineering News was offered the opportunity to interview Admiral Karl Schultz, the 26th Commandant in the history of the United States Coast Guard, in his office in Washington, DC. Just five months into his tenure, his plate is predictably full with a number of challenges, including: Attracting and retaining future U.S. Coast Guard personnel; addressing a number of assymetric threats, including cyber attacks; and ensuring captial and operating budgets are adequate to safely and efficiently carry out a global mission envelope, to name but a few.

As the U.S. Coast Guard moves to rebuild its icebreaker fleet we spoke with RADM Bruce Baffer (Ret.), head of Fincantieri’s effort to win the contract to build the Polar Security Cutters.The case for the U.S. to build a new class of icebreakers is strong. While news of global climate change and the shrinking ice caps at both poles is daily headline fodder, maritime navigation in and around the Arctic and Antarctic remains one of the most difficult and dangerous operating arenas on the high seas.

Orolia’s McMurdo SmartFind G8 AIS Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) has been approved by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada.The world’s first EPIRB to contain both the international 406 MHz alert frequency and the localized rescue power of the Automatic Identification System (AIS), the McMurdo SmartFind G8 AIS is now ready to order for leisure and commercial maritime use across the U.S.

Congress last funded the purchase of polar icebreakers for the U.S. Coast Guard in the early 1970s. The USCCG Polar Star (WAGB-10) was commissioned in 1976, followed by the USCGC Polar Sea (WAGB-11) in 1977. Polar Sea has been out of service since 2010 due to a major engine failure. Polar Star was ‘in commission, special’ status from 2008 through 2012 while undergoing a service life extension. It is currently the only active heavy polar icebreaker in the U.S. fleet. The less capable USCGC Healy (WAGB-20) is a medium icebreaker and is equipped to support research missions in polar waters.

America’s aging, sole remaining heavy icebreaker suffered several engineering challenges, including flooding and engine failure, on its way to completing a recent mission in the Antarctic, highlighting the U.S.’ need for new polar icebreakers. The 1970s-era U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star is called upon each year to aid the delivery of fuel and supplies for National Science Foundation research stations in Antarctica, carving a navigable path through the Ross Sea where seasonal and multi-year ice is sometimes as much as 10 feet thick.

Emergency responders have launched an urgent rescue mission to Antartic waters to evacuate a cruise ship passenger who is suspected to have suffered a stroke early Monday morning. Working closely with the U.S. Antarctic Program and the vessel’s operator and crew, Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ) is coordinating the medevac after receiving a call from the expedition cruise ship MV Ortelius located in the Ross Sea, off the Antarctic ice shelf, 3,600 km south of New Zealand.

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star arrived at the National Science Foundation’s McMurdo Station Tuesday after cutting a resupply channel through more than 60 miles of Antarctic ice in the Ross Sea. By carving a navigable path through seasonal and multi-year ice, the Polar Star assists in the annual delivery of operating supplies and fuel for two of NSF's three U.S. research stations in Antarctica. The Polar Star is America’s only operational heavy icebreaker that is capable of conducting the Antarctic resupply mission.

McMurdo has announced a new global satellite communications system, McMurdo OmniCom, the first in a family of products that will be rolled out over the next six months to provide complete worldwide fleet management and vessel monitoring solutions for the workboat, commercial fishing and artisanal fishing industries. McMurdo OmniCom is an integrated solution for commercial fleet operations that combines worldwide satellite coverage for constant communications to and from remote vessels with PRISMA Connect…

Russia has more polar icebreakers than the rest of the world combined. America has one polar icebreaker and that one is well past its prime. There has been talk of sharing icebreakers. Sharing may work with allies, who are generally on the same page. Sharing will not work with Russia, which views the world as a zero-sum game. In June 2016, Russia announced the launching of Arktika, the world’s largest polar icebreaker. With a full load displacement of 33,540 tons, a length of 173.3 meters and a breadth of 34 meters, it will be capable of breaking ice up to 2.9 meters.

Alphatron Marine said it has acquired a new office and warehouse space in Zwijndrecht, Belgium to serve customers in Belgium and France. The new location – operational since September and officially opened on November 9, 2016 – replaces the company’s existing Meerdonk office. Alphatron Marine Belgium is part of a group of companies governed by Alphatron Marine. Together, they act as importer, producer, developer and service provider of navigation, communication and automation systems. Besides this, the company provides specialized IT solutions.

IMC’s latest fisheries research and survey vessel design was built in Malaysia for the Bangladesh Department of Fisheries. RV Meen Shandhani arrived in Bangladesh in June after completing extensive sea and fishing trials and its delivery voyage. The Australian consultancy’s naval architects and engineers drew on a wealth of relevant experience, data and expertise when developing the research vessel’s design. Formed in 1994, IMC and its principals have a long interest in, and association with, the fisheries sector.

The U.S. Coast Guard’s polar icebreaker Cutter Polar Star has made a brief stop in a warmer climate, mooring in San Diego before returning to Seattle after a four and a half month-long deployment to the Antarctic in support of Operation Deep Freeze 2016. The Polar Star, a 399-foot cutter commissioned in 1976, is the nation’s only operational heavy icebreaker, and the most powerful non-nuclear icebreaker in the world. The cutter recently delivered necessary cargo to sustain the National Science Foundation managed U.S. Antarctic Program’s McMurdo and South Pole stations for the next year.

McMurdo, the most trusted name in emergency readiness and response and a division of Orolia (NYSE Alternext Paris – FR0010501015 – ALORO), has been selected by a leading Northern Africa search and rescue (SAR) authority to deploy their next-generation MEOSAR (Medium Earth Orbit Search and Rescue) satellite-aided SAR system. The contract is valued at over €4M (US$4.5M) with a performance period of 16 months. The MEOSAR system, which is the first of its kind in Africa, will include satellite ground stations and mission control and rescue coordination centers. It will also include McMurdo’s new Reference Beacon, which will provide ground system operators with configuration tools…

McMurdo informs it has launched an online resource center at to help impacted vessel operators comply with the requirements of the United States Coast Guard (USCG) Automatic Identification System (AIS) Mandate, which becomes effective March 1, 2016. “Many vessel operators are still learning about AIS and there is still a fair amount of confusion about how it works, as well as which AIS device is appropriate for their vessel,” said Randel Maestre, McMurdo Chief Marketing Officer. The resource center, located at info.mcmurdogroup.com/AIS-US-Coast-Guard-Mandate.html, features frequently asked questions and answers about the USCG Mandate, information about McMurdo compliant products, special offers and a McMurdo AIS dealer locator.

McMurdo  has announced PRISMA Connect, a web-based integrated fleet management system that connects ship to shore in real-time for improved communication and operational efficiencies, as well as increased crew productivity with two-way messaging and electronic forms capture. The innovative system, which is based on proven Boatracs BTConnect and BTVessel software, is the first product announcement under McMurdo’s new suite of PRISMA (Preparation, Response, Identification, Surveillance, Management, Acceleration) software solutions.

In 2014, Robert Suhay tackled the “longest single-handed distance sailed in a dinghy by a male – 283.5 nautical miles (326.24 miles)” into the face of Hurricane Arthur for a Guinness World Record. Next week, Suhay will attempt to break his own record in a 14-foot Laser dinghy unassisted from Beaufort, N.C. to Annapolis, Md., a distance of about 340 nautical miles that will take him around Cape Hatteras and across dangerous ocean shipping lanes. But, this time, Suhay will be using McMurdo’s Automatic Identification System (AIS) solutions to help keep him safe during the journey.