Name Ernest Shackleton Owner GC Rieber Shipping Launched 1995 as MV Polar Queen Draft 6.15 m Endurance 4.3 months | Namesake Sir Ernest Shackleton Yard number 267 Length 80 m Beam 17 m | |
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Operator British Antarctic Survey Builder Kværner Kleven Leirvik A/S | ||
British antarctic survey s rrs ernest shackleton
RRS Ernest Shackleton is a Royal Research Ship operated by the British Antarctic Survey. She is primarily a logistics ship used for the resupply of scientific stations in the Antarctic.
Contents
- British antarctic survey s rrs ernest shackleton
- Rrs ernest shackleton arriving harwich 21 july 2016
- History
- Construction
- Service
- References
Rrs ernest shackleton arriving harwich 21 july 2016
History
Launched in 1995 as MV Polar Queen for GC Rieber Shipping, she was operated in the Antarctic by other national programmes. The British Antarctic Survey acquired her on a long-term bareboat charter in August 1999 and renamed her RRS Ernest Shackleton after the Anglo-Irish polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton. She replaced RRS Bransfield. Known to users as the Shack, the ship has been chartered to Crystal Cruise Line to escort its 68,000 ton liner Crystal Serenity through Canada's Northwest Passage in late August/September 2016.
Construction
RRS Ernest Shackleton is ice strengthened with a double hull construction and is capable of a wide range of logistic tasks as well as having a scientific capability. She has a cargo tender "Tula" on deck for ship to shore transfer of equipment when the ship cannot berth alongside.
Service
RRS Ernest Shackleton is primarily a logistic ship, used for the resupply of the Survey's Antarctic research stations. She loads cargo and science equipment in the Humber and sails to the Antarctic in September/October each year, returning in May/June. After annual refit/drydock, Ernest Shackleton is chartered out for commercial use in the northern summer.
