Daehan Shipbuilding christens 'Mystic'

Daehan Shipbuilding has christened its new 170,500DWT vessel, at its shipyard located in Haenam, Korea.

The vessel has been christened ‘Mystic'. This vessel has an overall length of 289 metres, and a 45-metre beam, and is the first in a series of eight capesize bulk carriers ordered from the Norwegian Golden Ocean. The second vessel in the series is currently 70 per cent complete and will be delivered at the end of August Ms SB Choi, the wife of the Jeonnam province governor, JY Park, was the sponsor of the DNV-classed vessel. ‘Mystic' has a total engine output of 18,660kW and has a maximum speed of 15.4 knots. Daehan Shipbuilding has received global recognition for building an eco-friendly ship that satisfies the standards of CSR of IACS for the first time in the Korean shipbuilding history.
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New Sonar system to boost Navy’s warfare capability

The Kochi-based Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory is working on developing Sonar (Sound Navigation and Ranging) systems, which are lighter, compact and superior in performance, to boost the maritime warfare capability of the Navy’s ships and submarines.

Scientists here are conducting research on developing micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS)-based sensors to improve underwater surveillance capability of the vessels. The compact Sonar thus produced will fit more easily in submarines and ships. The latest in its inventory is a new generation Sonar — Humsa-NG for use in warships. The cost of manufacturing Sonar systems is Rs.20 crore to Rs.60 crore for each unit. The Navy stepped up research in anti-submarine warfare after INS Khukri, an Indian warship, was lost to a Pakistani submarine in the 1971 war. The Pakistan Navy has a formidable submarine capability and the Chinese Navy operates nuclear-powered submarines, which India is yet to acquire. The NPOL is the sole Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) laboratory in the State. “We are the only agency in the country with core competence in Sonar technology,” said director S. Anantha Narayanan, who was project director of ‘Panchendriya,’ the first indigenously-developed Sonar system for submarines. Recently, the agency developed the Ushus Sonar for use in submarines and this won the AGNI Award for self-reliance from the Prime Minister in May last. This Sonar is considered to be a versatile system to detect submarines and ships and is comparable to the best in the world.

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SMM Istanbul picking up speed

Good response to new shipbuilding fair in Turkish metropolis shipbuilding, machinery & marine technology fair in Istanbul from 21 to 23 January 2009.

The new shipbuilding fair SMM Istanbul has already made quite a splash in the international shipbuilding and equipment supply industries. As Peter Hoggett, Sales Manager Lincoln Diesels Spares Ltd., remarks, “both exhibitors and visitors to SMM Hamburg will acknowledge the ‘SMM’ brand name as the maritime industry leader. We are convinced that the organization’s past and proven professionalism will be transferred to this new and exciting event and the SMM Istanbul will be a triumph!” Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH (HMC) and the local partner Goca Fuar Kongre ve Sergi Hizmetleri Ltd.Þti (Goca Exhibitions) will organize this new shipbuilding event for the first time from 21 to 23 January 2009, at the centrally located fair site Lütfi Kirdar Convention & Exhibition Centre (ICEC), on the European side of Istanbul. The companies registered and prospects are mostly also participants in the world’s premier shipbuilding fair SMM in Hamburg in September 2008, and expect the same high level of professionalism and service at the new “SMM” branded maritime trade fair in Istanbul that they know from the Hamburg event. The new SMM Istanbul is very well accepted by the shipbuilding industry in Turkey. The Hamburg event includes exhibits from this bridging region between Europe and the Near East, on about 1000 square metres of exhibition space, half of these in the Turkish pavilion. That is the largest Turkish contingent so far at the world’s leading industry fair SMM in Hamburg. It shows how short the distance has become between Hamburg and Istanbul. The SMM Istanbul will make the ICEC a magnet for the maritime industries of the whole region from 21 to 23 January 2009. The Istanbul event, with about one third international exhibitors, will display the whole range of maritime products, technologies and processes, all intelligently structured in the way that is familiar to SMM visitors. Istanbul also brings theory and practice close together, as in Hamburg.

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Chemoil Charters Second Tanker

SGX Mainboard-listed Chemoil has chartered a second tanker to meet growing demand for its offshore fuel deliveries in the Gulf of Mexico.

At nearly double the size of the operation’s original vessel, the MY Atlantic, the two tankers will work in tandem to significantly increase supplies at key locations including, but not limited to, Offshore Galveston, Texas and the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP). Built in 2000, the 36,000 DWT tankers, named the Nordic Ruth is double-hulled and will be fully equipped to deliver marine fuels via Ship-to-Ship (STS) operations. Through operating both tankers with a combined capacity of over 50,000 DWT, the company will be able to undertake more voyages each month, increase available tonnage and ensure that there is always at least one vessel at sea to make deliveries. The Nordic Ruth will be operational in the second half of July 2008.
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Ocean satellite launch critical to Australian science

A new earth observing satellite being launched in California will help guide future Australian ocean and climate science.

Jason-2, or the Ocean Surface Topography Mission (OSTM), is a joint venture between NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the French Space Agency (CNES) and the European Meteorology Satellite service (EUMETSAT). "There's plenty resting on this satellite in terms of where our ocean and climate science is going," said Dr David Griffin, an oceanographer from the CSIRO Wealth from Oceans National Research Flagship and a member of the international science team, which advises on satellite altimeter missions. "Jason-2 provides a lifeline between space and some very significant science projects that are integral to our capabilities in understanding how the oceans are changing and particularly future ocean forecasting products," he said. With an orbit 1,336km above the Earth's surface, Jason-2 will be one of three satellites equipped with special altimetry sensors to precisely measure sea level, and indirectly infer ocean heat content changes. This information is also important for Australia's evolving ocean forecasting system, BLUElink, sea safety and offshore oil and gas operations, measuring global sea level rise, tracking large-scale ocean-atmosphere phenomena like El Niño and La Niña and marine mammals feeding in nutrient-rich ocean eddies, and forecasting currents for sports events such as the Sydney-Hobart yacht race. High quality satellite altimetry started with the TOPEX/Poseidon mission (1992-2005), and continued with Jason-1 (2001-to the present).
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