On this day in 1776, Governor Johannes de Graaff of St. Eustatius returned the salute fired by the American brig Andrew Doria, which is considered to be the first international acknowledgment of the independence of the new republic of the United … Continue reading
Category Archives: Lore of the Sea
The size of the typhoon Haiyan was staggering, and so too is the aftermath. Eleven million people were impacted by the storm, more than 600,000 were made homeless, and the death toll continues to rise. The BBC takes a look … Continue reading
Most of the media is referring to the massive slab of ice that has broken off the Western Antarctic Pine Island glacier as an “iceberg.” At 277 square miles of solid ice, I think an ice island is a more accurate … Continue reading
I recently came across a video of the Viking longship replica Saga Oseberg tacking across the wind. Before seeing the video I would have thought that the only way to tack a longship, to bring the wind from one side … Continue reading
There are indeed creatures in the oceans which could be called “sea monsters.” At the end of last month we posted about two very real “sea serpents” – oar fish that washed up on the coast of Southern California. … Continue reading
Great news. The captain and chief engineer of the 222′ supply boat C-Retriever, who were kidnapped off the coast of Nigeria on October 23th, have been released following the payment of ransom. The two Americans are reported to be in good health … Continue reading
The USS George Washington battle group has been ordered to depart from Hong Kong, where it had been making a port call, and to steam for the Philippines to support relief efforts in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan which … Continue reading
The USS New York called in New York harbor over the weekend to help celebrate Veteran’s Week. The ship is the fifth of the San Antonio class of amphibious transport dock ships. The ship’s bow includes 7.5 tonnes of salvaged steel from … Continue reading
In the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan, the Philippines is beginning to attempt to cope with what has been described as the worst natural disaster in its history. The typhoon hit the archipelago with winds approaching 200 mph and drove … Continue reading
Roughly two hundred years ago, Lord Byron published Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, which contains a stanza that today seems sadly dated: Roll on, thou deep and dark blue Ocean–roll! Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain; Man marks the earth … Continue reading
It all sounds like a bad novel. Bribes, prostitutes, and Lady Gaga tickets were allegedly handed out to US Navy officers by a Malaysian businessman known as “Fat Leonard” in exchange for classified information and directing business toward the Singapore-based … Continue reading
Robots are being increasingly being used to gather data at sea. Here is a fascinating undersea glider design in use by the Coastal Ocean Observation Lab (COOL) at Rutgers University, which uses gravity and buoyancy for propulsion, allowing to it remain at … Continue reading
On Friday morning, local time, Super Typhoon Haiyan came shore in the central Philippines. With an estimated maximum sustained winds of 195 mph and gusts to 235 mph, Haiyan is one of the most powerful storms ever recorded anywhere in the … Continue reading
On November 14th, 1863, on the Isle of Man in Great Britain, the shipyard of Gibson, McDonald & Arnold, Ramsey launched the 1,200 tonne full rigged iron ship, Euterpe, for the firm of Wakefield Nash & Co., Liverpool. The ship … Continue reading
In September we posted about the search for a new captain for the historic whaleship Charles W. Morgan. The whaler, which recently underwent a major reconstruction, first sailed in 1841 and is scheduled to sail again on a three month voyage … Continue reading
The U.S. Navy’s new supercarrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), was floated in the drydock last month. She will be christened this Saturday, November 9th at the Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding in Newport News, Virginia. In addition to other superlatives, she … Continue reading
A short video reminder of how quickly things can change. One Australia’s AUS-35 boat was racing in the Louis Vuitton qualifying matches in the America’s Cup of March 1995, when it suddenly broke in half and sank, in less than two minutes … Continue reading
In August we posted about the current boom in the lobster catch in Maine and about concerns that it could end in a bust. After years of averages catches of around 20 million pounds of lobster per year, Maine’s 5,500 lobster-men … Continue reading
This morning we posted about a new video game, Assassins Creed IV : Blag Flag, which takes notable liberties with history. One of the characters in the game, Edward Thatch, is based on the historical pirate, Edward Teach, better known as … Continue reading
My younger son, a senior in high school, mentioned to me a few mornings ago that the newest version of the historical action-adventure video game, Assassins Creed, which is Assassins Creed IV – Black Flag, has a feature that lets … Continue reading