Completed in late 2008, the M/V Auriga Leader is the world’s first cargo ship to be partially propelled by solar power.   The 656-foot, 60,000-ton car carrier will initially transport vehicles being sent for sale overseas by Japan’s top automaker, Toyota Motor Corp, and harness the energy of the sun in order to reduce fuel costs and cut carbon emissions.

Currenlty docked at the Port of Long Beach, officials from the port, Toyota and NYK Line are allowing visitors to come aboard and view the 328 solar panels on the M/V Auriga Leader as part of a demonstration project to help raise awareness about reducing diesel emissions from large ships.

The vessel, developed by Nippon Yusen K.K. and Nippon Oil Corp., is capable of generating 10% of the energy used while the ship is docked with its 328 solar panels on the top deck.  Nippon Yusen has set a goal of halving its fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions by 2010.

The panels themselves are not attached to the ship directly, but are rather installed on the ship’s car-carrier, which is capable of carrying 6,400 automobiles, and then connected to the onboard 440 volt electrical network.

The companies hope having the panels on the carrier will protect them from the stresses of the ship’s environment, including salt-water damage, wind pressure, and vibrations.

This weeks Ship Photo of The Week is of the Alaskan Navigator docked at BP Terminal Pier T at The Port of Long Beach. What’s exciting about this is that it is the world’s first oil tanker terminal equipped with shore power to eliminate air emissions from docked vessels.  Instead of running its diesel engines while at berth, the 941-foot Navigator plugged into a shore-side electricty grid to power its off-loading operations.  The Port of Long Beach tells us: [Continue Reading →]

It’s official, today is the first UN designated World Oceans Day. The concept for World Oceans Day was proposed at the 1992 Earth Summit and has been unofficially celebrated every year since then. 17 years later official designation by the U.N. was finally given and is considerate by ocean conservationists as a significant step in conserving and protecting our world’s ocean.

Each year the event organizers designate an official theme and this year they picked “one ocean, one climate, one future”. The offical website, TheOceanProject.com, explains; [Continue Reading →]

Passion focused on a singular goal is often the driver of new ideas and technology. Today the focus for many is on saving our planet from the effects of global warming a goal magnified by a global, bipartisan desire to reduce our dependence on oil. For maritime interests the opportunity to participate in a solution is significant. A recent study by the American Geophysical Union confirms long held beliefs that marine transportation is among the most fuel-efficient methods for moving global resources but simultaneously acknowledges shipping as a significant factor contributing to global climate change. By improving on the efficiencies inherent in ocean transport great opportunity exists for this industry to make a significant and lasting impact on the environment. Leading the way in reducing emissions and fuel consumption is Hamburg based Skysails GmbH.

The innovative idea, in terms of both imaginative thought and probability of home run success, of using kites to tow large commercial ships was conceived by inventor Stephan Wrage. This exciting product finds its origins in the kite surfing community but, unlike its cousin, was not developed in the backyards and garages of enthusiasts for personal enjoyment. Rather the company and its distinguished partners, which include Beluga Shipping and the historic Zeppelin Power Systems, have financial goals and high level government support fueling their goal of incubating the second age of sail.
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(Source: IMC Brokers)

In the broad expanse of the northern Pacific Ocean, there exists the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, a slowly moving, clockwise spiral of currents created by a high-pressure system of air currents. The area is an oceanic desert, filled with tiny phytoplankton but few big fish or mammals. Due to its lack of large fish and gentle breezes, fishermen and sailors rarely travel through the gyre. But the area is filled with something besides plankton: trash, millions of pounds of it, most of it plastic. It’s the largest landfill in the world, and it floats in the middle of the ocean.

The primary sources of ocean debris include storm sewers, illegal dumping, littering, commercial and recreational boats, and commercial shipping. [Continue Reading →]

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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In honor of Earth Day, let’s take a look at an archived post on Skysails. But first, here is a brief update into the current state of affairs provided by Skysails:

Within the framework of the pilot phase, the SkySails-System is being explored on board the MS “Michael A.” and the MS “Beluga SkySails” during regular shipping operations. Throughout these trials the system’s level of robustness and reliability is first of all being elevated to that demanded by our customers and its suitability for daily use established. Subsequently the system’s performance will be evaluated extensively and optimized.

On both ships – the “Michael A.” and the “Beluga SkySails” – the SkySails-System has been put into operation successfully. The customer vessels remain in regular commercial operation throughout the pilot phase. Initially, two to three SkySails engineers will be aboard of each ship. All components are being long-term tested during use of the SkySails-System on board. The results immediately flow into the process of improving and optimizing the product. Read full update…

On her maiden voyage, the Beluga SkySails set sail to Venezuela from Bremen on January 22, 2008 and reached the Norwegian port of Mo-I-Rana on March 13, 2008 after travelling a total of 11,952 nautical miles.

Archived post originally posted in Jan. ‘08. [Continue Reading →]

Santa Maria Shipping - Short Sea Shipping

This week John interviews Stas Magaronis, President of Santa Maria Shipowning and Trading about green and short sea shipping and the marine highway. Music: Radioghost by Norwegian Recycling from Mashuptown.com

Subscribe Via iTunes HERE

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 Short Sea Shipping Podcast [51:51m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

University of Michigan researchers are investigating a radical new design for cargo ships that would eliminate ballast tanks, the water-filled compartments that enable non-native creatures to sneak into the Great Lakes from overseas.

PhysOrg.com is reporting that an alternative to current and proposed tank cleaning methods.

Here’s an excerpt:

“In some ways, it’s more like a submarine than a surface ship,” Parsons said. “We’re opening part of the hull to the sea, creating a very slow flow through the trunks from bow to stern.

“You’re continuously sweeping water through the ship and out,” he said. “So you’re always filled with local sea water, not hauling water from one part of the world to the other.”

The U-M ballast-free ship concept was conceived in 2001 and patented in 2004. It is intended for new-vessel construction only.

The full PhysOrg.com post is here.

(Ed. note: My guess is that this system could be used for cooling as well. A special thanks to BitterEnd reader Cherei in San Antonio for point me to this post.)

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This post was written by Richard Rodriguez, Rescue Tug Captain, and US Coast Guard approved instructor for License Training. You can read more of his articles at the BitterEnd of the net.

(Courtesy: Dicovery.com)

The Arctic Report Card is a yearly report released by NOAA’s Climate Program Office that tracks the Arctic atmosphere, sea ice, biology, ocean, land and Greenland.  The report card provides clear, reliable and concise information on recent observations of environmental conditions in the Arctic, relative to historical time series records.

This year’s report card received less than stellar grades with 3 of the 6 area’s (atmosphere, sea ice, and Greenland) coded in red.  This means changes are strongly attributed to warming.  The remaining 3 areas (biology, ocean, and land), are all coded in yellow, meaning they have mixed signals.  Last years report card showed only two red areas and four yellow areas.

Code Red determining factors: [Continue Reading →]