Managing ballast water is an indispensable part of maritime operations. How that water is treated before it is discharged will grow in importance as new international rules come into effect. The Ballast Water Management Convention entered into force internationally…
In an era where movies and video games use computer-generated images to create realistic scenes, it should be no surprise that the same technology has found a home in maritime training. This has long been the dream across multiple…
Given the painted area of all of the hulls at sea, it…
An emerging trend before the pandemic, online training has now become a major element in maintaining and improving mariner skills almost everywhere — with consequences that so far seem to be mostly positive. Ukraine-based Danica Crewing Services recently conducted…
Pilots represent a small fraction of U.S. mariners, but their impact — safely guiding up to 90 percent of goods into the nation’s ports — is immense. While experience remains the most valuable component of pilotage, training has evolved to…
New maritime fuels are coming or are already here, and the associated changes are raising concerns about the readiness of today’s mariners. For example, the rise of liquefied natural gas (LNG), which is handled in ways dramatically different from fuel…
Beyond collisions with ships, whales inhabiting the waters of North America are vulnerable to injury or death from another human-related threat: fishing gear entanglement. Research conducted by the New England Aquarium and the Center for Coastal Studies showed that scars…
While humans once stood in awe of the size and strength of whales, the roles have been nearly reversed since the mid-20th century as increasing ship traffic has added insult to the injury done by the era of whaling. To…
It took a decade or two from the invention of the marine propeller in the 19th century for the technology to become widely accepted. Thereafter, adoption has been nearly universal, but progress toward improved efficiencies has come in fits…
Drones are everywhere these days,…
Cordage, mainly towing and mooring lines, is being required to do more in a new maritime age as cargo vessels get larger and tugboats get more powerful. In response, manufacturers have continued to innovate.
Marine environments are notoriously rough on cordage.
For more than a century, marine radio has been a boon to all who work on the water, providing first for improved safety and, over time, becoming an indispensable operational tool.
Security vessels for civilian operators have been getting a lot more attention in recent years, and that has been driving a wave of purchases.
A wireless helm developed by Sea Machines has received approval for use on a class of U.S.-flag tugboats that support articulated tug-barge (ATB) sets, a new way of doing business that is bound to generate comment among mariners.
The tools and techniques for salvaging ships improved dramatically in the 20th century with the advent of more powerful pumps, safer diving apparatus and a host of other advancements.
The increasingly sophisticated and regulated maritime world needs professionals with stronger skill sets than in the past.
Beeps, buzzes and flashing lights are an increasingly common soundtrack for life on the bridge of any modern vessel.
In the wake of high-profile collisions involving U.S. Navy destroyers, including a 2017 incident that killed 10 sailors aboard USS John S. McCain, the service is revising bridge training practices and addressing what it sees as an over-reliance on computer touch screens for ship control.
Fuel and engine monitoring is a growing tool to help vessel operators improve efficiencies.
For 12 seasons, American viewers have been engrossed by the Smithsonian Channel’s “Air Disasters” series, which combines dramatizations of actual aircraft mishaps with accounts of how investigators ultimately determined what went wrong — and how to prevent similar accidents.
After decades of neglect and slow progress, mariners have grown more accustomed to donning survival gear — life jackets and immersion suits — or at least keeping the protection close at hand.
While there may have been some lag in the adoption of mobile devices in the maritime world, that’s changing these days with the rapid evolution of mobile apps in communication, navigation and beyond.
Popular culture has been inundated with stories about autonomous or semi-autonomous cars.
