a a a

News

RV Oceania to Oslo for IPY-OSC

Published: 09.03.2010

The spectacular Polish research vessel Oceania will dock in Oslo Harbour during the IPY Oslo Science Conference and will be open for visits from participants. Oceania, a tall sail ship, is owned by the Polish Academy of Sciences.

With masts that are 32 meters high, RV Oceania will certainly attract due attention in the harbour. The ship will serve as lodging for conference participants from Poland.

Using sails have its obvious advantages over motor power if the objective is to study wildlife, birds and marine life.

She was built in 1985 in the Gdańsk Shipyard in Poland. The hull was based on plans of earlier tall ships, but its rigging is different. Oceania was originally a full rigged ship, with three masts. On every mast there was only one sail, in the shape of a vertical rectangle (sometimes Oceania was classified as a frigate), but later the yards and the sail from the mizzen-mast were removed. Sails are raised and driven hydraulically.

RV Oceania has got 13 double cabins, have beds for an additional 7 people and the mess can seat 30. The ship is equipped with laboratories and equipment able to provide hydrographic, optic, acoustic, chemical, biological and particulate experiments and observations.

Hydrographic survey vessels are used to conduct hydrographic and seismic surveys of the seabed and the underlying geology. This information is useful for both producing navigational charts for shipping, and for detecting geological features which are likely to bear oil or gas. Acoustics is a branch of physics and is the study of sound (mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids). Oceanographic research vessels carry out research on the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of water, the atmosphere and climate, and as such, are required to carry equipment for collection of water samples from a range of depths, including the deep seas, as well as equipment for hydrographic sounding of the seabed, along with numerous other environmental sensors.

More than 220 research vessels are registered. Due to the demanding nature of the work these ships have to deal with, research vessels are often constructed around an icebreaker hull, allowing them to operate in polar waters. 16 nations have their own research vessels, but Russia and the US share between themselves almost 2/3 of the capacity.

Research vessels carry out a number of roles at sea. Some of these can be combined into a single vessel, others require a dedicated vessel. Fisheries science requires platforms which are capable of towing a number of different types of fishing net, collecting plankton or water samples from a range of depths, and carrying acoustic fish-finding equipment. Fisheries research vessels are often designed and built along the same lines as a large fishing vessel, but with space given over to laboratories and equipment storage, as opposed to storage of the catch.