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Marine License Insurance - An Interview With Admiralty Attorney Ralph J. Mellusi Esq. - Part 1

John — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 22:24:53 +0000

Since the first tree was carved by our ancestors for the purpose of water borne transportation risk has been associated with our industry. Vessel build quality, the training of mariners, a culture supporting safety are all elements under the control of a shipping company but despite great strides being made in every element under our control, ship still happens. To mitigate risk, shipping companies take out hull, P&I and various other types of Marine Insurance. They also insure their work force by purchasing health, dental and accident insurance from medical providers. Those looking to ship cargo take are also well protected against loss, if they fail to insure the cargo a shipper might accept the goods for transport but accepts little liability if, say, a container gets washed overboard.

With multiple types of insurance working together to protect every element of a voyage their is currently one looming gap; insuring the maritime officers against the revocation or suspensions of their license. To make matters worse some license holders are allowing the U.S.C.G. to serve as judge, jury and executioner by signing a “Settlement Agreement” in which they prematurely - and needlessly - surrender their licenses in the confusing moments following a marine casualty. This happened immediately after the Empress Of the North grounded on a rock near Juneu Alaska. The 3rd mate had been asked to cover the watch of the 2nd mate and, despite knowing a difficult turn would occur on his watch, the captain provided no direct supervision or guidance. This occurred 2 weeks after the mate had graduated from California Maritime Academy. Luckily this individual had the foresight to ask our opinion in the matter and it was quickly resolved. But if the USCG is making demands, you may not have time to find a lawyer and if you do the costs will be high.

Ralph Mellusi is an admiralty lawyer specializing in this field he has represented a high number of mariners on behalf of MOPS, the leading provider of Marine License Insurance in the United States. We sat down with Ralph to ask a few questions.

A recent study in Tradewinds predicts a 20-30% increase in maritime casualties over the next 5 years. This has already been a banner year for accidents worldwide, how does the future look from your perspective?
The future trend is towards more aggressive administrative actions against licensed mariners. Heightened environmental vigilance, and awareness of the public create added pressures on the Coast Guard to maintain high levels of professional competence. Another contributing factor is the increase in ship size transiting pilotage routes. Dredging has not been able to maintain pace with deeper ship drafts. Larger vessels, less underwater clearance and narrow channel widths at times stretch the safe limits of ship maneuverability. Technology is also moving rapidly. It is not unusual for pilots to encounter new propeller and rudder designs which have unique maneuvering characteristics which at times are not adequately described in the Pilots cards. Freshly minted Third Mates/Engrs from our maritime academies will assume watches and responsibility on vessels having technology which is often above and beyond what was taught at school. The schools do a great job but there are limits to what can be taught in a four year period which in part utilize training ships which are less than modern. The Coast Guard believes that one of the best ways to maintain minimum professional standards is to conduct public hearings in which mariners are held accountable for their actions. In instances in which a mariner is determined to have acted negligently, appropriate remedial measures are taken to meet the circumstances. This could include license revocation, suspension, probation, required classroom instruction, simulator training or observer time in the wheel house.

Who are the most at risk of having their licenses revoked, the entry level 3rd mate, captain, Chief Engineer? Are premiums adjusted by experience and position?
Certainly the novice Mates and Engineers for the reasons I described above are particularly at risk until they reach the point where they have acquired a sufficient degree of familiarity with the vessel and their duties.

Taking over a watch on a ship you have never seen before is a frightening proposition. It takes a few months to learn a power plant, i.e. to scope out the system and to know where the key valves and components are located and how to start up and shut down pumps, systems etc. You no sooner come up to speed and your tour is over. The next ship may have a different power plant and you sweat out the process all over. The same is true on the bridge. Beyond this point, those most at risk are the department heads because of the greater responsibility. Location has a lot to do with this as well. Have the misfortune to be involved in an incident in New York Harbor which is written up in the local papers more or less guarantees maximum Coast Guard, NTSB response.

Can you tell us a bit more about the trend of “Settlement Agreements” seen over the past few years?
Settlement agreements are relatively new in the area of Administrative License Procedures. This came about as a result of changes in the authority given to the Administrative Law Judges (ALJs). In past times, the ALJs had no authority to discuss or entertain settlement. This meant that the only opportunity for settlement discussions was before the CG filed the formal charges. Now that the authority has been given to the ALJs, settlement discussion are always available. This is a good thing for the mariner because once formal charges are presented, the mariner has a powerful weapon of “Discovery” which means he/her attorney can demand documents, statements and other relevant materials from the CG. It is often the case that when all the information is made available through discovery that the mariner and the CG are in a better position to discuss a settlement. The strengths and weakness of the case are now exposed. The issues become fine tuned.

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Stay tuned for part two of this interview next week.

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The above comments are intended to provide a general overview of my experiences as a MOPS attorney and agent. Conditions and terms contained in the MOPS Policy control.

Ralph J. Mellusi Esq.
Tel: 212 962-1590 Fax 212 962-1590

Email Rjmellusi@ Sealawyers.com
www.MarineLicenseInsurance.Com

Poll - IMO Initiatives

John — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:26:04 +0000

Looking For Talent - Are You The Next Reality TV Star?

John — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 20:24:01 +0000

An independent producer of reality television shows, has asked our help in posting a small job opening they have on the books. In an email to gCaptain, producer Fred Grinstein writes:

Tiger Aspect Productions is developing a series on maritime ships and vessels for a major US cable network, and we’re in search of diehard seamen who might host our new series.

The ideal candidate would be a credible “insider”, think Discovery’s “Future Weapons”, or History Channel’s “Tougher in Alaska”. It’s not necessarily a veteran historian we’re looking for, but rather a true passionate fanatic of ships and the maritime world that can help communicate this passion to our audience. We’re looking for someone the viewer can connect with as the “real-deal”, someone with real-world maritime experience - i.e. a former captain from a naval fleet, or freight cargo ship, or a tugboat operator. The ideal candidate is a male, aged early 30’s to 40’s, though we’re open to people who don’t necessarily fit this mold.
The show is in development, but the concept is to travel around the country/ world and get up close and personal with the past, present, and future of ships. From ice breakers in the Arctic to the biggest cruise liners sailing the Caribbean, from oil tankers cruising the Persian Gulf, to fishing vessels pulling pots out of the ocean.

Are you a “diehard seamen” with knowledge of a diverse selection of ocean going vessels? If so send a recent photo, a note about yourself and your passion for the marine industry to: Fred Grinstein or visit them in person at The Pacific Marine Expo, Booth # 446!

We know our readers are the most dedicated ship enthusiasts on the planet, hopefully we will see one of you on the TV one day soon!

Poll of the Week: Electronic vs Paper Charts

John — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 06:29:54 +0000

Related Forum Discussion.

An Ugly Reality - Whale Wars, Hunting The Whale Hunters

John — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 05:30:22 +0000

Love them or hate them, the crew of the Sea Shepard are now television stars.

Click here to view the embedded video.

You can find gCaptain’s Sea Shepard articles from last year’s hunt HERE. The official television show website can be found HERE.

Dream Tanker - Painted by Kids

John — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 22:28:34 +0000

What happens when you let a comedian and elementary students paint a ship? No, the answer isn’t the Norwiegan Gem, it’s the Dream Tanker. Pink Tentacle tells us;

The Dream Tanker, one of the largest liquified natural gas (LNG) tankers in the world, now travels in style. Comedian-turned-painter Jimmy Onishi and 40 elementary school students have designed monster-sized psychedelic murals for the ship’s spherical tanks. The total area covered by the murals is large enough to cover 100 buses.

The 120,000-ton Dream Tanker, owned by an affiliate of Osaka Gas, measures 289.5 meters (950 feet) long and 49 meters (160 feet) wide. With 4 independent spherical tanks measuring 43 meters (140 feet) in diameter, the tanker can hold up to 67,000 tons of LNG.

Osaka Gas decided to decorate the tanker with graphics in celebration of the company’s 100th anniversary. The company asked Kansai-area elementary school students to draw pictures, which Jimmy Onishi then incorporated into his giant images of a fish, crab, shrimp and turtle. Sumitomo 3M Ltd. then used computers to process the images and printed them onto a special adhesive film, which was attached to the tanks. Read More…

Photos from her commissioning in 2006 can be found HERE.

Shiphandling Simulator

John — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 22:03:10 +0000

The Seamanship Tutor has put together a series of simple computer animations that show various shiphandling techniques. The animations include search and rescue operations, use of an anchor and docking operations (among others). The full set of videos can be found HERE but we’ll share with you a short preview:

The Baltic Moor

To achieve the “Baltic Moor”, the vessel should approach parallel to the berth at about 1 to 1.5 ships lenghts with offshore anchor walked back and a stern mooring wire secured by bights, along the ships side, to the ganger length of cable.

gCaptain’s Travel Gear - An Office Aboard Ship

John — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:12:19 +0000

Note: This is not our gear or our ship. <-click for photographer details.

This is an article that was originally posted in July, but with the holiday season coming up I figured it was a good time to re-post.

Working “day jobs” aboard ship gCaptain’s crew has three separate offices; home, work and mobile. As chief blogger I get to carry the most stuff so I wanted to show you what it takes to blog when I’m away from gCaptain HQ. Here’s the gear I use at home and thousands of miles from the nearest shore:

While gCaptain has a very nice office in downtown San Luis Obispo, maritime news breaks at all hours of the day and night. So while I’m at home my office consists of a Mac Pro connected to both my 23inch Cinema Display and my 42″ Plasma Television. Since I don’t work and watch TV at the same time the setup works well. I use it with a Logitech Sidewinder mouse and an ultra sleek Apple Slim Keyboard. The Mac Pro is probably overkill but it was inherited from a failed start-up and I had no takers on Craigslist. I also have an inexpensive dell monitor I rotate 90degrees for dual monitor goodness (a trick I learned from Jason Calcanis at Mahalo -image-).

While traveling to destinations around the world my setup is a black macbook (however, due to an unfortunate incident involving wine it is now the new macbook) and my iPhone. I tend towards lengthy email replies when using the Macbook so I much prefer the iPhone to make them short and quick.

On the ship my primary computer is a windows box which I need for my day job. Because of restricted permissions I rely heavily on a Portable Application Suite I launch from my waterproof USB drive and VNC to access my office computer. Outside my office the environment is unfriendly to electronics. I rely on my Pelican Flashlight at night, Rite in the Rain notepad and Fisher Space Pen. If I need a camera I put my Waterproof Xacti Digital Camcorder in a Micro Pelican Case. If I am outside on the ship’s deck for extended periods of time I catch up on the days news with a custom RSS reader; printed paper. To keep from killing too many trees I use a duplex enabled printer set at 2-pages per side.

I work a schedule of 3 weeks at work and 3 weeks home so I get 6 months vacation per year. To facilitate this each position on the ship is filled by two people, the person on and the person off. This is nice because while at home my relief answers all emails, phone calls, ect., leaving me 100% disconnected from work. But regardless of where in the world my ship is located on the globe I must fly to it every 3 weeks. Staying connected on the road is important. To accomplish this I have set-up a custom SSH tunnel solution that I use with Apple Remote Desktop to connect back to my office network. I also have setup automatic back-ups with the Amazon S3 based app JungleDisk and use Transmit to retrieve my files. Storage is important while traveling so I cloned my MacBook‚ hard drive using SuperDuper and replaced it with a 250gb laptop hard drive.

Favorite Mac Apps:
Teleport (keyboard/mouse Sharing)
Transmit (FTP/S3)
Time Machine
AppZapper (for trying out new apps)
AppFresh (App Updater)
Things (GTD Inbox)
Jumpcut (simple clipboard app)
Mind Manager

Remote Access Apps:
VNC
Skype
SlingPlayer
Apple Remote Desktop
TrueCrypt (data encryption)
JungleDisk (dirt cheap back-ups)

Online Apps:
Pownce (username: Capt)
Dyndns.org (domain names for your home router)
OpenDNS

Hardware:
Black Macbook
iPhone
Pelican Cases and Pelican Flashlights
Mac Pro
23inch; Cinema Display
Waterproof Xacti Digital Camcorder

That’s it in a nutshell. Check out our gCaptain Gear Guide for more goodies or visit our Amazon Store which contains only those products used by us and our readers. -Captain John Konrad

A Message For Barack Obama: Welcome Aboard!

John — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 09:10:03 +0000

gCaptain is excited to announce that Barack Hussein Obama was elected today as the 44th president of the United States Of America.

Just a few short weeks ago when I made my personal decision on which candidate I would vote for I also made the decision not to endorse a candidate here on gCaptain. This is not a political blog and we work hard to keep personal opinion far removed from our pages. It is an open blog meaning we quietly publish well written articles by those who’s point of view is contrary to that of our editors. We also seek out criticism at every turn but each article and comment published shares a common goal; adding value to our readers who, in turn, will be better informed to promote the safe operation of ships.

The only thing more rare to gCaptain than political commentary is the personal story behind these words but today is not your average day so here it is; I have met John McCain and he is personally responsible for getting me through a difficult time in my life. I voted for McCain in both the 2000 and 2008 Republican primaries and have full confidence his election to the presidency would have been a true asset to our country. I am also a Republican but I voted for Obama.

Today the maritime industry is facing a crisis. I don’t need to repost this year’s casualty list or share the 5 year forecast set by marine insurers to inform you of the trouble we face as doing so would only discourage hope. Today my country elected an individual who ignored the pundits and put in the hard work required to win. It’s true, Barack Obama lacks the experience or deep understating of maritime affairs to fully support our industry from Day 1 but what he possesses is a true willingness to listen, learn, take risk and put in the hard work to help us meet our industry’s needs. Ideals we share.

I ask all our readers to put aside their past, their voting record and partisan beliefs to help Barack get this ship underway. We will need teachers willing to help the public understand maritime affairs, we will need those with ideas to put in the work needed to make them happen and we will need heretics like Barack who are willing to assume the risk needed to stand up and call attention to the problems they so clearly see. We need hope and we need action.

I ask, regardless of your decision today or even your nationality that you join us in your support of Obama and his message of getting this ship of ours back on course. gCaptain intends to put our full support behind his message and relay it to our industry. If you are looking for motivation, here are his words:

Are Rising Salaries Enough To Retain Mariners?

What Motivates Your Vote?

John — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 08:50:23 +0000

Curious which presidential canidate gCaptain supports? Our support runs parallel to that of The Unofficial Coast Guard Blog (LINK).

The Best Knives for the Pro-Mariner

John — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 13:24:33 +0000

I carry three things with me every time I go on deck. A Pelican Flashlight, Channel Locks and my knife. I have tried many and my absolute favorite knife is the Spyderco Assist!
What makes this the best knife?

Thanks to the sheepsfoot blade I know I’m not going to acciently stab myself in bad weather
It has a built in (really loud) whistle in case I go overboard.
It’s designed to open with one hand
Sypderco are simply the best quality knifes.
The combotip allows you to have the benefits of both a straight and serrated edge.
See the ridges on the back of the blade and again on the front of the handle? If you open the blade just enough to get a line in then squeeze the blade against the handle you’ll very safely cut the line.

How sharp does the knife have to be for the last “trick”? Very sharp but spyderco has Free Sharpening for life and a broken blade will never cost you more than $25 to replace. If you are looking for a simpler/thinner knife be sure to check out the Leatherman Rescue.

If I don’t have my spyderco on me it means I’m carrying my second favorite knife; the Leatherman Wave. A great multipurpose knife since leatherman has an excellent warranty, each knife has both a straight edge and serrated blade. These blades are located on the outside of the knife so they are easily accessible with one hand.

With the Spyderco Assist being sold at Amazon for $59 and the Leatherman Wave on sale for $65 you can probably afford both and thank us the next time a storm rolls through during lines.

Amazon Links:

Maritime Mystery - The Sailing Ship Mary Celeste

John — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 22:55:51 +0000

The List Universe brings us: Top 10 Unsolved Mysteries

Mystery number 2, the harrowing tail of the sailing ship: Mary Celeste
Mary Celeste was launched in Nova Scotia in 1860. Her original name was “Amazon”. She was 103 ft overall displacing 280 tons and listed as a half-brig. Over the next 10 years she was involved in several accidents at sea and passed through a number of owners. Eventually she turned up at a New York salvage auction where she was purchased for $3,000. After extensive repairs she was put under American registry and renamed “Mary Celeste”.

The new captain of Mary Celeste was Benjamin Briggs, 37, a master with three previous commands. On November 7, 1872 the ship departed New York with Captain Briggs, his wife, young daughter and a crew of eight. The ship was loaded with 1700 barrels of raw American alcohol bound for Genoa, Italy. The captain, his family and crew were never seen again. The ship was found floating in the middle of the Strait of Gibraltar. There were no signs of struggle on board and all documents except the captain’s log were missing.

In early 1873, it was reported that two lifeboats grounded in Spain, one with a body and an American flag, the other containing five bodies. It has been alleged that these could have been the remains of the crew of the Mary Celeste. However, the bodies were apparently never identified.

The Cosco Busan - A Failure in xxx Resource Management

John — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 07:26:04 +0000

For a business to be successful you need hard work, willingness to accept risk and a touch of luck. For gCaptain the bit of luck was someone else’s misfortune, namely that of John Cota, Pilot of the ill fated container ship Cosco Busan.

Historically pilots don’t assume liability for incidents occurring regardless of fault. This is the case because historically a pilot’s job was to serve as a local advisor, expert in the location of reefs, buoys, current patterns and the flow of traffic within a port. The handling of the ship and command of the crew was left to the person that knew them best, the captain. So what has changed?

First ships and cargo have been standardized. In the past ships brought every cargo needed to sustain the businesses located in and around a port city. Fuel, raw material, imported goods and the myriad of miscellaneous material needed for the growth of an American city floated in on the hulls of a wide variety of vessels. Today ports specialize in certain types of cargo. Industrial cities have bulkers arriving daily while energy hubs, with refineries and pipeline terminals, primarily welcome tankers. Oakland’s specialty is containers and the city welcomes boxes that leave daily on trucks and trains bound for the warehouses of America’s retailers.

Not only do individual ports welcome similar types of ships the vessels themselves are closely matched. Naval architects have shared ideas and small domestic shipyards have long since been driven out of business by a much smaller number of large overseas yards that can put together ships at a rate approaching that of World War II. The vessels they build not only look alike but have similar handling characteristics and docking features.

Pilots have also taken on a larger number of tasks. The pilots of San Francisco Bay were at one point responsible only for bringing vessel from the bar to an area close to the dock. Docking pilots moored the ships. This is still done in many ports like New York and serves to limit the number of skills and thus training, experience, etc… required.

While the daily experience gained by pilots on similar types of vessels, combined with additional tasks increasing their knowledge of vessel dynamics their counterparts, the ship captains, have seen a different reality. Tracking of ships, satellite communications, professional weather routing and other advancements have resulted in increased oversight and management of a captains duties. Regulatory changes have resulted in an increase in paperwork all needing the masters approval and oversight. The amount of time available to learn the capabilities and shortcomings of a ship and her crew.

Pilots and ship captains have also diverged in one other aspect, training. The result of ship incidents and the subsequent investigations spark motivation for change and the need for more training more often than not tops the list of recommendations for improvement. While improved training of crews is desperately needed we must look at how the training of captains and pilots differ. Captains are regulated by a multitude of domestic and international authorities each requiring a specific courses that must follow a set curriculum. Companies often increase the amount of training with internal courses organized by ship managers and Human Resource departments.

Pilots, on the other hand, are regulated by local authorities who look to pilot commissions to dictate requirements. These commissions are often populated by the very pilots they seek to regulate creating a minimum standard much lower than that required of a captain. This does not sound like the a positive dynamic but, in ports with truly competitive pilot application processes, the bar is raised at the point of entry obviating the need for training and regulation to address the lowest common denominator. Pilots are also highly visible in their local communities and subject to high levels of personal scrutiny when incidents occur. John Cota’s wife, for example, was a Peteluma councilwomen well know in political circles. The self desire to be seen as skilled professionals and enjoyment of a loose regulatory structure, not fear of incarceration, drive a desire to be good at what they do…. This drives training structures that work.

I won’t dive too deep into the differences between the two training structures but I will say that once required training is completed by a ship’s captain there often is not the budget, time or energy to participate in training that exceeds the bare minimum. The oversight of this required training limits the freedom of maritime schools to offer unique solutions or even change course when new ideas are introduced within the community. Pilots have the opportunity to work closely with training providers to tailor courses to their needs and have more freedom to seek non traditional means of training.

With daily experience gained on similar types of ships, improved training and self regulation it was only a matter of time before the proficiency of our nations pilots past that of captains in navigating inland waters. Captains have increasingly relied on this experience to get their ships docked safely.

So with pilots becoming increasingly more proficient and new technology continually being developed to assist them how could the Cosco Busan allied with the Bay Bridge?

Like the large majority of catastrophic events caused by man it’s an insidious compilation of events that cause the incident. This error chain leaves many to blame but I feel compelled to highlight the primary failures and, yes, assign blame. So here goes; the individual most responsible for the incident has yet to be named!

John Cota made two crucial errors; a willingness to proceed (even rush) under adverse conditions and refusal to fully utilize resources available to him, namely electronic charting systems. Captain Sun also made two critical mistakes; acceptance of the position and willingness to proceed on the day of the incident. The high level of proficiency and low incident rate of our nations pilots helps to explain Cota’s decision and Captain Sun’s trust of his decision to proceed that morning but does not explain either’s willingness to proceed knowing one important fact; the entire vessel crew was replaced just two weeks prior.

It is rarely disputed that one of the greatest recent advancements in the safe operating of vessels has been the industry’s embrace of Bridge Resource Management but how can a bridge team operate using these principals if they have not had time to explore each others strengths and weaknesses? How can a team learn a vessel with only two weeks aboard her? And how can team members share vessel and interpersonal knowledge if there is no continuity?

John Cota made critical errors that directly resulted in the incident but the most profound error he shares equally with Captain Sun; a lack of courage. In regards to Captain Sun the profanity of this decision is compounded by the mariner shortage which provides ample opportunity for mariners to leave companies that make unwise decisions. For Captain Cota it’s making the decision to work aboard a vessel with no hope of fully utilizing BRM despite having a pilot association with a history of supporting pilots who stop unsafe jobs.

Despite all the differences pilots and captain’s share two similarities beyond their proficiency in moving large objects; a lack of courage and unwillingness to embrace changing times . The real failure, however, rests with the individual who’s final approval was required to sweep aside the need for continuity and replace the entire crew of the Cosco Busan in one single sweep. Unfortunately, he is unlikely to ever stand trial. The best we can do is extend the concept of BRM to broader ship management. It’s not until captains broaden their horizons from the ship’s bridge to vessel & intercompany resource management that incident rates will once again fall.

-John

___________________

Note: I was reluctant to write this article but strong imputes came with the US Coast Guards issuance of NAVIGATION and VESSEL INSPECTION NAVIC NO. 04-08 (details HERE). Upon discovering that John Cota took various medications under the care of a qualified physician it was soon clear this issue would be pushed by the Coast Guard brass. gCaptain asked a number of Coast Guardsmen and industry leaders about the impending regulation and we were told repeatedly that a list of medications and conditions would not be published, just guidance for medical professionals. We are deeply concerned that this NVIC and the push to give VTS power to override a captain’s decision are progressing while the true causes for the incident are not being published. If you disagree with any points mentioned here or see other underlying problems I ask you to leave a comment below or contact me directly at 805-456-8644. -John

Dead Water Effect - Sinking Of The Fram

John — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 07:25:10 +0000

Scientists at the Universit´e de Lyon have found new answers to a phenomenon called “Dead Water”. No this not refer to the newly released WWII movie of the same name, rather it’s a term for the effect seen when a vessel moves through water consisting of two or more layers with different salinity. This problem is typically seen when runoff from a melting glacier forms a relatively thin layer of fresh water on top of denser seawater and results in the loss of vessel speed and steerage.

The magazine New Scientist writes:

Physicist Thierry Dauxois and colleagues from the University of Lyon found that a hidden wave at the interface of the layers invisibly chases and slows a boat (see video, top right).

The toy boat is pulled across the 300-centimetre tank with a constant force by a cable. The water is separated into two layers of different saltiness and hence density, labelled with dye.

Just as described by people who have experienced dead water in the real world, the water’s surface is smooth, but the boat suddenly slows as the concealed wave makes contact.

“It creates a depression below the boat that prevents it from moving,” team member Matthieu Mercier told New Scientist.

The scientists further state this might have been the primary factor resulting in the loss of Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen and his ship Fram. The team, however, has yet to explored the link between the effect and a high number of recent cruise ship sinkings in Antarctica but it does makes sense.

One primary reason for these incidents is the growing popularity of Eco-Tourism which includes touring the Antarctic. For a long period of time this segment of the cruise ship market was dominated by small to medium sized vessels but in recent years large vessels have entered the region forcing small operators to differentiate their services by getting closer to the ice packs and taking more risk. The results have been tragic.

The following video was put together by New Scientist to help explain the phenomenon.

Click here to view the embedded video.

A briefing on the preliminary research can be found HERE.

MSC Napoli Drydocked - HD Photo

John — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 07:03:47 +0000

Maritime Photographer Frodog brings us this HD image of the infamous MSC Napoli in drydock. He writes:

In a Dry Dock aft of the Resolution was this Hulk of a ship, being broken up. it transpired to be the Napoli, which ran aground around about this time last year, off the Devon and Dorset coast, with many items of her cargoes washing ashore, including BMW motor cycles amongst other stuff, which bounty hunters rightly claimed ownership. Whilst looking around, there was a decontamination unit working. What are they decontaminating? I ask. I was lucky enough not to be asked not to take photographs, unlike a colleague of mine who was prevented from doing so! LINK

The Science Of Knots

John — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 22:16:28 +0000

Photo by AMagill

We all know the basics of knots. They rely on friction to cinch against themselves or an object, they reduce the breaking strength of a line and a good one is easy to remove but what about randomly created knots? Doug Smith, a physics professor at the University of California set to find out. The New York Times tells us:

Working with his research assistant Dorian Raymer, he took some string — about the thickness of a computer-mouse cord — and dropped it into a small square plastic box. They spun the box around for 10 seconds, then opened it up. Sure enough, they found “this really monster, complex knot,” Smith says. Then they repeated the experiment a dizzying 3,415 more times, using strings of different lengths and boxes of larger sizes, to see whether there were any rules that governed how badly the string knotted.In the end, one law emerged: The longer the string, the more likely it is to form a knot. String that was 1.5 feet or shorter never got tangled up. But “as the string gets longer, the probability of a knot forming goes up and up,” Smith says, at least to 18 feet. Flexibility matters, too. The more pliable the string, the more likely it is to knot spontaneously.

Trying to figure out how to tie a knot? Try Grog’s Animated Knots.

Holiday Gift Guide | Spot Messenger Package - $60 Off

John — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 19:47:37 +0000

The gCaptain SPOT Messenger Contest is now closed and the units are in the mail but for those looking to get a unit of their own West Marine has a killer deal. They write:

Spot Messenger Package Deal! - $149.99 Value

12 months FREE tracking - $49.99 Value
FREE Carrying Case - $19.99 Value
Total Package Price - $149.99
Savings - $69.98

They also have:

Save $30 - Offshore Manual Belt Pack PFD

and
Clearance Sale - up to 50% off top quality products at West Marine

Be sure to use code AFFWEST for an additional 10% off orders placed through THIS LINK.

More holiday gift ideas for mariners can be found HERE.

The Pirate Ship M/V Communicator - Interesting Ship Of The Week

John — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:00:03 +0000

Suffering from regulatory pressure, uncooperative management and looking at the success of a previous pirate radio ship, the Radio Caroline, a team of radio executives planned to create a new offshore venture by installing two pirate radio stations on an anchored ship. The original plan called for the use of a high-flying balloon system in order to keep a high antenna aloft which would transmit radio programs to nearby residents of the UK. The team soon realized this plan was overly ambitious, but settled on a more reasonable plan to transmit their signal. Soon after, the M/V Communicator was fitted with powerful gear and a towering antenna to launch their station, “Laser 558″. Wikipedia tells us:

Laser 558 was a popular European offshore pirate radio station (others include Radio Caroline, Radio Noordzee and Swinging Radio England) launched in 1984. Laser 558 used mainly American disc jockeys who had been recruited and flown over from the USA. The station was based aboard the ship the MV Communicator, which was based in international waters in the North Sea, and thus took advantage of a legal loophole which allowed them to circumvent the requirements for an official license and legally broadcast to the UK. Within a matter of months the station had gained an audience of millions - probably because of its programming format of one oldie followed by one current song. Eventually poor management and lack of advertising income starved the station off the air. In 1986 an attempt was made to return the station to the airwaves as Laser Hot Hits, but the same problems arose once more. Read More…

Teh following is a brief look at how they built the piracy antenna. Click here to see the full photo details.

For those who think “times have changed”, think again. While the M/V Communicator is no longer pirating the airwaves, the attitude of the times lives on aboard the Principality of SeaLand.

Strange Indeed.

The 11 Most Interesting Wind Turbine Designs

John — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 18:43:20 +0000

Today’s hottest job market for mariners is Offshore Oil and Gas but this is by no means the only controversial industry segment which presents opportunities to mariners. Like exploratory drilling, Offshore wind farms have also raised controversy among industry experts but presents unique job opportunities for those looking for more than the average liner run. Today we look at the 5 most interesting wind turbine designs.
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Helix Wind

Helix Wind, who offers a well-designed system that creates electricity to power any home or small business. The Savonius turbine-based design catches wind from all directions, creating smooth powerful torque to spin the electric generator. It’s mounted up to 35 feet high, in winds as low as 10 mph, thus allowing the Helix system to fulfill electricity needs, while being congruous with the environment. The strength of the wind is captured by Helix’s distinctive and efficient vertical blade design. The vertical Savonious 2.0 and Savonious 5.0 have a patent pending design which empowers the turbine to convert wind power into energy less than 5 decibels above background noise. Translation… The noise that the turbine makes is similar to the noise generated when wind passes through a tree or a house, compared to conventional horizontal wind turbines that operate at up to ten times above the wind speed, which is responsible for the piercing whistling sound near wind farms. (Source: gLiving.tv | Video)

QuietRevolution

This is equivalent to about five low-energy houses’ electricity demand, or the electrical needs of a twenty man office. Unlike other turbines which are usually noisy the unique shape of the quietrevolution turbine allows it to operate in near silent which is ideal for operating close to residential areas. The distinctive helical shape of the turbine is also eye pleasing which is impotent since many communities rejected wind turbines because of their visual impact. (Source: TheFutureOfThings)

Selsam Super Turbine

The innovative Selsam SuperTurbine off-shore concept was designed for simplicity, as it eliminates all components that do not directly contribute to power generation, resulting in a low-cost wind turbine. The unit is equipped with multiple, synchronous, small rotors and with a universal joint that enables it to tilt. Because of this structure, the turbines resemble reeds bending in the wind. The optional addition of a blimp can make this floating wind turbine even more powerful. The Selsam prototype was able to produce 6,000 watts in 32.5 mph winds, proving the efficiency and effectiveness of the design. (Source: TFOT)

Salsam Sky Serpant

The advantages of the SuperTurbine design are many. First, during large and fierce storms, these deep water turbines may intentionally lay down by flooding chambers, or even completely submerge to survive. Bonus! Second, flotation near the surface forms a fulcrum, with the weight of the rotors and driveshaft balanced by a downward force from the mooring below. According to the site, this allows the turbine to bend similar to arching your back to take advantage of wind patterns much more easily. Additionally, the rotors can be staggered, spiral, or in line. (Source: GroovyGreen)

The LoopWing

This is the “LoopWing” wind turbine. It is soon to be unveiled in Japan’s Eco-Products 2006 Exhibition. The E1500 model turbine is aimed at homeowners, and it sports a unique wing design that operates with low vibration, and at wind speeds as low as 1.6 m/sec. The efficiency specs on the turbine are vague — “43% power performance at optimum wind speeds” is all published.(Source: Treehugger)

The Egg Beater

BSI, the British Standards Institute, gave first prize in its Sustainability Awards 2007 to Ben Storan for his “afforable personal wind turbine suited to the urban environment.” According to the BSI, The result is a unique design which uses vertical, rather than traditional horizontal, rotation. This feature gives a slower rotational speed, which allows the turbine to capture more energy from turbulent air flow, common to urban environments. It also means quieter operation. (Source:: Treehugger)

Magenn Air Generator

Magenn Air Generator - While designed for shore based power stations, not ships, could they one day be repurposed? ”

Magenn’s system is a lighter-than-air wind turbine capable of powering a rural village - the 30 metre wide, helium-filled “Air Rotor System” contains a turbine that spins around a horizontal axis and can produce 10 kilowatts of energy as it floats above the ground while attached to a copper tether. Larger models — ones that might power a skyscraper — are also reportedly in the works. The company claims the governments of India and Pakistan have expressed interest in the first version. Magenn is planning to launch a 1kw prototype (costing around C$1 million) into the air above Ottawa this (northern) spring.” Read More…

Kite Turbine

Chetwoods Associates, an architectural group from Great Britain, has come up with a new environmental design that promises to capture wind power in an odd but innovative manner: By using a huge replica sail as a model. The first version of this idea will use a giant spinnaker sail placed in a mountain gorge near Russia’s Lake Ladoga area. A spinnaker is a type of sail usually made for boats taking wind from ‘a reaching course to a downwind, i.e. with the wind 90°–180° off the bow.’ It’s supposed to take in the wind, powerfully generated between a mountainside channel, and then further funnel that energy through an attached turbine. It’s safe to assume that there would be power conduit beneath the river to drag in the converted energy for community use. (Source: Wired)

WindSpiral Turbine

At a height of 30 ft. tall and only 2 feet wide, the WindSpire converts wind energy into measurable electricity through a vertical design, a rotor/generator system (with a low speed giromill and rotating ‘air core’ motors), and a wireless modem that an owner can track on a computer. It produces about 1900 kilowatt hours per year in 12 mile per hour average winds, which is about a quarter of the total energy used by a regular U.S. house. But the key promise mentioned in the video, is that if the spire was twice as thick, it could likely produce 100% of the energy needs of a household. (Source: Wired)

MagLev Wind Turbine

The MagLev wind turbine is expected take wind power technology to the next level with magnetic levitation. Magnetic levitation is an extremely efficient system for wind energy. Here’s how it works: the vertically oriented blades of the wind turbine are suspended in the air above the base of the machine, replacing the need for ball bearings. The turbine uses “full-permanent” magnets, not electromagnets - therefore, it does not require electricty to run. The full-permanent magnet system employs neodymium (”rare earth”) magnets and there is no energy loss through friction. This also helps reduce maintenance costs and increases the lifespan of the generator. (Source: Inhabitat)

Laddermill

Researchers at Delft University are building what they call a Laddermill to tap the steady and stiff winds in the jet stream. The Laddermill consists of a stack of tethered kites that soar as high as five miles and then return toward earth in an endless loop to generate electricity. As the kites sail up to the jet stream and back, they pull with them tethers that turn an electrical generator located on the ground. The Delft researchers also are experimenting with a fleet of gliders that would soar in place of the kites. (Source: CNN)

Offshore Installation - A Photo Diary

For those curious how these wind farms will be installed offshore… be sure to check out Frodog’s Photo Diary of the Skegness Project. You can view the diary HERE and the HD Slideshow HERE.

gCaptain.com » John

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The 11 Most Interesting Wind Turbine Designs

Helix Wind

QuietRevolution

Selsam Super Turbine

Salsam Sky Serpant

The LoopWing

The Egg Beater

Magenn Air Generator

Kite Turbine

WindSpiral Turbine

MagLev Wind Turbine

Laddermill

Offshore Installation - A Photo Diary

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