The Maritime Aquarium News

Many problems in our “New World” can be solved more quickly than ever due to the speed at which information now travels. Gone are the countless long days of research, because often our questions can be answered instantaneously at a computer terminal or on a handheld mobile device. Traditional investment, research, science and industry have all attempted to reconfigure their business practices to accept that information speed. Unfortunately, government regulation and bureaucracy have not…

Mapping and shaping the growth of marine hybrid means many things to different stakeholders. The journey leads us all to the same place. If you follow the advancements in automotive design, the term or tag “hybrid” has come to define the alternative energy movement on our roads and highways. HEV autos have moved past Ford and GM in Detroit and into the hands of contemporary entrepreneurs and inventors the likes of Tesla’s Evan Musk or Dr. Victor Wouk. BMW, Ferrari, Bentley and…

Short sea shipping is alive and well on America’s East Coast. In the United States, counties and states directly on the shoreline constitute less than 10 percent of the total land area (not including Alaska), but account for 39 percent of the total population. From 1970 to 2010, the population of these counties increased by almost 40 percent and are projected to increase by an additional 10 million people or 8 percent by 2020. Coastal areas are substantially more crowded than the U.S. as a whole, and population density in coastal areas will continue to increase in the future.

The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk christened a larger, “greener” new research vessel on Friday, September 26 in preparation for launching a new era in examining, monitoring and teaching about Long Island Sound. The $2.7 million environmentally friendly research vessel, Spirit of the Sound, was christened and officially named during a ceremony at the Aquarium dock. Breaking a bottle on her hull was godmother of the boat, Astrid Heidenreich of Greenwich. The boat will reportedly be the first research vessel in the U.S. running on hybrid-electric propulsion.

Robert E. Derecktor, Inc., is pleased to announce its selection to build a new 19.2-meter catamaran research and classroom vessel for The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk (CT). The Maritime Aquarium has been providing student and public research voyages in the protected waters of Long Island Sound since 1988. The new Incat Crowther-designed all-aluminum vessel will carry up to 65 students with a crew of 5. The safety of the students is of paramount importance to the vessel's design and construction. The vessel will be fully ADA compliant and meet all current USCG Subchapter T requirements.

A new Maritime Aquarium (Norwalk, Conn. USA) research & floating schoolhouse vessel to be fitted with Northern Lights' Hybrid Marine System. Northern Lights Hybrid Marine is an ideal fit for the Maritime Aquarium. Their new 65-foot research vessel – designed by Incat Crowther – will be used throughout Long Island Sound to entertain and inform aquarium patrons. Installing the Hybrid Marine system allows the vessel the clean, reliable propulsion it needs to travel out into the Sound.

The TK Foundation has announced the approval of eight grants totalling nearly $2 million. The TK Foundation is a strong funding vehicle for maritime programs and youth development. Its maritime grant-making program is proactive, inviting maritime organizations to submit requests for funding in specific areas of interest to the Foundation. In keeping with its focus on supporting non-profit organizations and programs that improve the maritime realm, The TK Foundation has granted eight awards. The World Maritime University (WMU) is a centre of excellence for maritime education and research, operating under the auspices of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

A U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary operations vessel rescued nine children and one adult from the 40’ R/V Oceanic, which had run hard aground in Norwalk Harbor this afternoon. The “Otter” a Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel responded to a distress call from the research vessel after it became aground near Light 11 in Norwalk Harbor. The children ages 8 – 11 donned lifejackets and boarded the Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel, while the research vessel crew remained on board. According to Coxswain Richard Aarons, the rescue went as well as could be expected in light of the unexpected grounding. Coxswain Aarons reported, “My crew performed flawlessly, I cannot say enough for their professionalism.

The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk in conjunction with the Connecticut Maritime Association and supported by The Connecticut Audubon Society and Mystic Aquarium will host an evening seminar on the challenges of responding to a major oil spill. The program, while shaped by the three organizations, is in fact the product of a high school student led initiative entitled e3. Standing for education, environment and energy the initiative is the result of a desire to develop something positive on a local level to the tragic spill going on in the US Gulf. The evening seminar will demonstrate some of the heroic and practiced response efforts being applied by industry and local communities to the environmental attack.