maritime

  As a seafarer The magnetic compass has been the main directional tool in the seafarer’s toolbox to try and determine true north and then use that information for steering a course or take a bearing to fix position. The problem is that it has errors [1] . Let us take a closer look at a  ships magnetic compass. Today it is likely to be found on the monkey island as a backup to satnav systems but is still a requirement on ships. The compass card is a magnet overlaid with a card holding the points of the compass. The card has a pivot and is mounted in a bowl filled with alcohol and water to dampen the movement of the card. The bowl is then mounted in a   set of gimbals so that the compass remain as horizontal as possible with   the ships motion and the complete magnetic compass is installed in a wooden stand called a binnacle. The binnacle provides housing also for important tools to minimise compass errors. ...

  This seems an obvious statement but without the ability to handle  ropes and use knots it is just not possible to be competent as a basic seafarer. This is particulalry relevant to traditional clinker built boats where there are no hydraulics or electricty to help you. You just have ropes that need to be attached to various parts of the boat. This subject has many opinions on which knot to use in a particular circumstance. We will use Vaaghals as an example where we use 7 basic knots that are used to operate the boat. Bowline (Pålestikk) This is a general purpose knot often used to form a loop or bight in the rope so it can be passed through or over mooring cleats or posts. It is also used to attach a brace (bras) to each end of a yard (rå). It does not slip under load and can be difficult to untie after use if it has had a lot of tension on it. Reef knot (Båtsmannsknop) As the term applies it is used to tie together the two ends of the reefing lines in the sail and al...

  An adventure for the Båtlab gang It all started about two years ago when two of our colleagues, Charlotte and Camilla, announced that they would not be around the Norwegian Maritime Museum for some time, as they were involved in a large project to move all the cultural items stored in Ekeberg to a new storage location near Drøbak. This was very sad for us, as with Charlotte we had learned a lot on traditional clinker-built boats by working with the boat builders on the reconstruction of Norwegian boats. In fact, 4 boats in total. With Camilla, we learnt much on the conservation of cultural artefacts, especially boats, rubber gloves included.   So, they disappeared and then later, we had an invitation from Camilla for an orientation tour on a new warehouse, located in the countryside around Nesodden. This would be exciting as we had spent some time working with Charlotte and Camilla in the caves of Ekeberg and anythi...

One of the critical competencies a seafarer needs is situational awareness, being alert to his or her environment and being able to analyze the situation and make informed decisions. A formal definition: The term situational awareness can be defined as how elements are viewed within their surroundings, relative to time and space, and how to foresee or predict the occurrence of events by understanding trends and patterns. [1] Lack of this competence can lead to navigational errors that can be disastrous. A survey of practising seafarers using a bridge simulator found that over 50% of them failed to recognise a navigational fault even when there were audio and visual cues [2] . A report by the Norwegian Maritime safety authority into a recent collision between a Norwegian warship and a tanker off the Norwegian coast had several safety recommendations. One of these (Marine No 2019/06T) stated: «The navigator in charge did not pick up on the signals of danger or that the navigator’s own si...

 Like all food, regional diversity in Yorkshire is no exception.   Of course, everyone knows about Yorkshire puddings, or do they? A Yorkshire pudding is not some soggy sponge like batter that you eat with your Sunday roast, but a light, fluffy, crispy cup like dough that is filled with gravy. A real insult to a Yorkshire person is to serve the Yorkshire pudding with the main course. It should be eaten alone as a starter. The reason for this is pure Yorkshire. Fill ’em up with Yorkshire pudding and they won't want as much main course! Thriftiness is a Yorkshire trait always to be followed! Of course, if you come from Nottinghamshire, you would eat your Yorkshire pudding with jam as a dessert. But then again, they're really daft from down there! A variation on the Yorkshire pudding is “toad in the hole”, a large Yorkshire pudding with sausage embedded in the mix. Very filling. Then there are kippers, another essentially Yorkshire fish delicacy. In my youth, my bro...