Capture of U110 and the Enigma Machine, Seventy Years Ago Today

Posted on by May 9, 2011

On May 9, 1941, seventy years ago today, the German submarines U110 and U201 were attacking a British convoy in the Atlantic south of Iceland.   U110 was forced to surface after being depth changed and was abandoned by her crew who thought that the submarine was sinking.  A boarding party from HMS Bulldog boarded the submarine and carried off its code books, ciphers and a Naval Enigma machine.   The Enigma machine and the documents allowed Alan Turing and his codebreakers at Bletchley Park to break the German Naval Enigma code, an  intelligence breakthrough which changed the course of the war in the Atlantic.

An exhibit commemorating the 70th anniversary of the capture of an Enigma machine and codebooks from a German wartime submarine has opened in Bletchley Park.

Bletchley Park opens U-110 Enigma exhibit
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The Snakehead Fish in New York and the ‘Godzilla’ Lionfish in the Caribbean

Posted on by May 8, 2011

Snakefish (left), Lion fish (right)

Two recent articles about alien invasive species: The New York Times reports on efforts to stop the smuggling of the Chinese snakehead fish. The fish is considered to be  a delicacy in New York’s Chinatown, but is a voracious predator that can wipe out entire schools of fish and destroy an ecosystem when released outside of its natural habitat.   Likewise the BBC reports on  the ‘Godzilla’ lionfish and its threat to Caribbean waters, where it has no natural predators.
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Women Making Music with the Sea

Posted on by May 8, 2011

This is not specifically a Mother’s Day post, but somehow, it feels right to post today. Women of the Banks Islands, a group of islands in northern Vanuatu, in the Pacific stand waist deep in the ocean and literally play the water by pounding out complex rhythmic patterns to show their appreciation to the sea. The short clip below is from a BBC Documentary ‘South Pacific’ ( ‘Wild Pacific’ in the US) and as reported by Adelle Havard in Mother Jones – Power of Communication.   Thanks to Steamboat Bill for tweeting about this music of the waters.

Women Making Music with the Sea

USS Michael Murphy Christened, Dedicated to Fallen SEAL

Posted on by May 7, 2011

Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy would have been 35 years old today, had he not died in combat behind enemy lines in Afghanistan in 2005.  Lt. Murphy was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the United States military’s highest decoration, for  herosim.   Today the USS Michael Murphy, the 62nd ship of the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, named in honor of Lt. Murphy was christened at Bath Iron Works.

Navy ship dedicated to fallen SEAL
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El Hierro – Energy from Wind and Water

Posted on by January 7, 2021

El Hierro is the easternmost of Spain’s Canary Islands, 750 miles from the Spanish mainland.  The island itself has no energy resources beyond wind and water.  There is now a plan to make the island wholly energy independent by linking wind and hydro-power together to provide a constant and reliable supply of electricity.

A Spanish Island’s Quest to Be the Greenest Place on Earth
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America’s Cup Test Sessions: a Brave New World

Posted on by May 7, 2011

I remember when America’s Cup racing was fairly tame –  beautiful 12M yachts gliding in light air in the waters of Rhode Island Sound.   Times have indeed changed.  The new AC45 wing-sailed catamarans recently underwent two weeks of testing in Auckland, New Zealand.

America’s Cup test sessions: a brave new world

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Nuclear Leak Forces Russian Icebreaker Taimyr Back to Port

Posted on by May 5, 2011

A nuclear leak on the Russian icebreaker Taimyr forced it to attempt to return to the port of Murmansk.

Nuclear leak in Russian icebreaker

RUSSIA launched an urgent rescue mission overnight after one of its atomic-powered icebreakers developed a nuclear leak in the frozen seas of the Arctic and was forced to abandon its mission.
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Claude Choules – Last World War I Combat Veteran Dies at 110

Posted on by May 5, 2011

In March we posted about the birthday of Claude Choules, the last combat veteran of World War I.   He has now died  in Perth, Australia at age 110.

Last WWI combat veteran Claude Choules dies aged 110

The world’s last known combat veteran of World War I, Claude Choules, has died in Australia aged 110.

Known to his comrades as Chuckles, British-born Mr Choules joined the Royal Navy at 15 and went on to serve on HMS Revenge.
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Interview with Linda Collison, author of Surgeon’s Mate

Posted on by May 5, 2011

Linda Collison’s new book Surgeon’s Mate, the second book in the her Patricia MacPherson nautical series,  was recently been released.   Astrodene’s Historic Naval Fiction interviewed Linda Collison about her new book, which  we are reposting with permission.   We reviewed Collison’s previous book, Star Crossed, here, and have been looking forward to her latest.

We will be posting a review of Surgeon’s Mate next week. In the mean time, check out Astrodene’s Historic Naval Fiction May Newsletter.
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Remora ROV fishes out Air France Black Box

Posted on by May 4, 2011

My first thought was if that is a remora there must be quite a shark out there someplace. Obviously a different type of remora.  The Remora 6000 is a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) that can operate at depths up to 6,000 meters.    It  recently  retrieved  the  black box (which is actually orange) from the wreckage of Air France Flight 447 which crashed  into the Atlantic June 1, 2009 en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, killing all 228 people aboard.

Remora ROV fishes out Air France black box
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Navy Fires Three Commanding Officers in One Week

Posted on by May 4, 2011

Last week the Navy relieved the commanding officers – Commander Jay Wylie of the guided missle destroyer, USS Momsen; Commander Etta Jones of the amphibious transport dock ship, USS Ponce; and Captain Donald Hornbeck in command of Destroyer Squadron 1.  The Navy has not fired ten commanders so far this year. In 2010 the Navy dismissed 17 ship commanders.

Navy Fires Third C.O. — This Week!
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Captain Kidd in the News – New Exhibit at Docklands Museum and Shipwreck ‘Living Museum of the Sea’

Posted on by May 2, 2011

Captain William Kidd

The notorious pirate Captain William Kidd was executed three hundred and ten years ago this month, yet is far from forgotten.  A new exhibit is opening on May 20th at the Museum of London Dockyards – Pirates:  The Captain Kidd Story.   Also the wreck of the Quedagh Merchant, abandoned by Captain Kidd, is being dedicated as a “Living Museum of the Sea” by Indiana University and the government of the Dominican Republic.

Museum of London Docklands to host new Pirate exhibition

The exhibition, which is timed to coincide with Kidd’s execution on 23 May 1701 in Wapping, will explore the myths and mysteries surrounding common perceptions of pirates.
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Record-breaking floods force engineers to blow up Mississippi River levee

Posted on by May 2, 2011

Last week we posted that the Ohio River may be too high to allow the running of the Great Steamboat Race on May 4th.    The river has just kept rising.   Tonight the Army Corps of Engineers will blow up a  Mississippi River levee, flooding farms in southern Missouri to save a flood-threatened Illinois town upstream near the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.  A legal challenge by the Missouri attorney general to stop the destruction of the levee failed Sunday, allowing the Corp to proceed with the plan.

Record-breaking floods force engineers to blow up Mississippi River levee
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Navy SEALS Kill Osama Bin Laden

Posted on by May 2, 2011

US naval special forces commandos are called SEALs, referring to their ability to operate at SEa, in the Air and on Land.   Yesterday Navy SEALs were called upon to capture or kill Osama Bin Laden who was hiding in a mansion in Abbottabad, a garrison city of 100,000 about 65 miles north of Islamabad, Pakistan.  In an operation reported to be carried out by 20-25 Navy SEALs, Bin Laden was killed after a forty minute firefight.  Bin Laden’s body was subsequently buried at sea from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson.

Osama Bin Laden Killed By Navy SEALs in Firefight
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Update: MS Veendam’s New Nose

Posted on by May 1, 2011

Photos : Veendam Eng.Dept

In early January we posted about Holland America Lines’ MS Veendam hitting a Southern Ocean storm, encountering waves of over 30 meters and winds of 70 knots. At the time there was no reported to the ship or injuries to passengers or crew.   That report, as least as far as the ship is concerned, was premature.  Maasmond Maritime recently posted photos of  the MS Veendam receiving a new “nose” in Bahamas Shipyard after been damaged during heavy seas near the Falklands.

Happy May Day, not Mayday!

Posted on by May 1, 2011

The first of May is traditionally called May Day and is related to the Celtic festival of Beltane and the Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night.  The English have been known to break out in fits of Morris Dancing around May Day.  In many countries May Day is celebrated as International Workers Day or Labor Day.

Mayday as a distress call over radio is much newer.  The Mayday callsign was originated in 1923 by Frederick Stanley Mockford (1897–1962).  A senior radio officer at Croydon Airport in London, Mockford was asked to think of a word that would indicate distress and would easily be understood by all pilots and ground staff in an emergency. Since much of the traffic at the time was between Croydon and Le Bourget Airport in Paris, he proposed the word “Mayday” from the French m’aider. “Venez m’aider” means “come help me.”