HMS Endeavour

Posted to Maritime Musings (by Dennis Bryant) on December 2, 2014

The bark HMS Endeavour was built in 1764 as the collier Earl of Pembroke. A type known locally as a Whitby Cat, it had a broad, flat bow, a square stern, a long box-like body with a deep hold, and a flat bottom. Originally ship-rigged, it was…

Alfred Thayer Mahan

Posted to Maritime Musings (by Dennis Bryant) on September 16, 2011

Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914) was born at West Point, where his father was an instructor. After graduating with distinction from the US Naval Academy in 1859, he served blockade duty on a number of warships during the Civil War. Mahan was promoted at…

Perihelion

Posted to Maritime Musings (by Dennis Bryant) on January 4, 2011

The whoosh you experienced at about 1900 UTC on Monday, January 3, 2011 was the sun passing by on its closest approach to the Earth – a mere 91,402,505 miles away. This recurs every year, often at night when it can’t be observed. The date and…

SOSUS-VENTS

Posted to Maritime Musings (by Dennis Bryant) on August 27, 2010

The Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS) is a US Navy program, initiated in the early 1950’s, to track Soviet or other potentially hostile submarines. It consists of a series of hydrophones strategically placed on seamounts and continental slopes…