Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
February 13, 2015
The sea lily (Bourgueticrinida) is an order of marine animals referred to as crinoids. They are typically found in deep ocean waters (to a depth of about 18,000 feet). In their adult form, they are attached to the sea floor by means of a stalk.
Posted to Global Maritime Analysis with Joseph Keefe
(by
Joseph Keefe)
on
February 3, 2015
Long Beach, CA: Less than 12 hours after the New England Patriots’ late game heroics stunned the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX, U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Paul Zukunft found himself facing a standing room only audience of Passenger Vessel Association (PVA) delegates…
Posted to Global Maritime Analysis with Joseph Keefe
(by
Joseph Keefe)
on
January 19, 2011
It wasn’t too long ago that a former key official in the previous administration advised me that the problem with today’s version of the federal government and legislative arms isn’t the lack of passion to get the job done right. Instead, I was told…
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
November 1, 2013
Once the Dutch decided to compete with the Portuguese and the Spanish for maritime commerce with East Asia, they jumped in with both feet. After establishing a base in Batavia (modern-day Jakarta), they focused on trade with China and Japan.
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
September 3, 2013
During the American Revolutionary War, British forces captured thousands of “rebels”. Those in uniform were accorded treatment somewhat akin to prisoner of war status. Those not in uniform, particularly the maritime privateers, were subjected to harsher conditions.
Posted to Martin Rushmere
(by
Martin Rushmere)
on
March 31, 2013
In what is essentially an update of a 2012 report, The American Society of Civil Engineers has awarded a C grade to the nation’s seaports and their efforts to keep up with essential maintenance and improvement. Much of the report I covered in…
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
May 4, 2012
Abel Tasman (1603-1659) was a Dutch merchant and explorer. He is credited with the European discovery of Australia and New Zealand. He joined the Dutch United East India Company (Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie - VOC) in 1633 and was promptly…
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
November 22, 2011
Little is known of Henry Hudson prior to 1607, when he was hired by the Muscovy Company of the Kingdom of England to find a northern route to the Far East. He and a crew of ten sailed on the 80-ton Hopewell. They reached the east coast of Greenland and traveled north to the ice pack.
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
August 5, 2011
Georg Wilhelm Steller (1709-1746) was a naturalist and zoologist, noted for being the first European to set foot in what is now Alaska and for describing and documenting some of the unique animal life of the region. He was born in Windsheim, Bavaria and studied at the University of Wittenberg.
Posted to Maritime Transportation Security News and Views
(by
John C.W. Bennett)
on
April 15, 2011
The US Government having been kept in business for another week, the National Maritime Security Advisory Committee (NMSAC) started a two-day meeting on April 12th. The agenda previously discussed was modified such that the day started with the discussion of Seafarer Access Shore Leave Policy…
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…
Posted to Global Maritime Analysis with Joseph Keefe
(by
Joseph Keefe)
on
September 1, 2010
Responding directly to our August 10th article entitled, “STCW Compliance: will we or won’t we,” the U.S. Coast Guard’s Director of National and International Standards has affirmed the U.S. position on STCW compliance, especially as it relates…
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
June 8, 2010
The Thames Barrier is a 1,710-foot wide movable flood control barrier across the River Thames just downstream from central London. After a ten-year construction period, it was officially opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on May 8, 1984.
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
April 6, 2010
The US Coast Guard adopted the concept of geographic districts when it absorbed the US Lighthouse Service in 1939. Previously, it had no formal segmentation of its chain of command based on geography. Rather, the chain of command was grouped around function.
Posted to Maritime Musings
(by
Dennis Bryant)
on
March 5, 2010
The trireme was utilized as a warship in the Mediterranean Sea from the 7th century BC until the fall of the Roman Republic at about the commencement of the Christian era. No other warship design has survived in service for a comparable period. It was truly the dominant battleship of its day.
Posted to Gulf Coast Maritime
(by
Matt Gresham)
on
March 1, 2010
From the halls of Congress to the county courthouse, lawmakers and government bureaucrats alike love numbers. They use them in graphs and display them on poster boards so all can see the benefits of the latest program or industry up for debate at any particular time.