The yacht ''Astral'' is a 30m ketch-rigged sailing yacht which was donated to

Mediterranea Saving Humans Mediterranea Saving Humans APS is a "civil society platform" making connections between existing networks and individuals and a "non governmental project". Though it is similar to the many NGOs operating in the Mediterranean it is not actually a ...

(MSH) in 2016 by Livio Lo Monaco, head of Grupo Lo Monaco. ''Astral'' is a steel-hulled vessel and was designed by

Philip Rhodes Philip Leonard Rhodes (1895–1974) was an Americans, American naval architect known for his diverse yacht designs. Life Rhodes designed a wide variety of vessels from 7' dinghies to 123' motor-sailors, from hydrofoil racers to America's Cup win ...

and built at Kröger Werft Rendsburg in 1970.Astral
''www.fraseryachts.com'', accessed 17 June 2021 In operating the yacht, Mediterranea Saving Humans also has the support of the German association

Sea-Watch Sea-Watch is a German non-governmental organisation that operates in the Mediterranean Sea, notably by commissioning ships to rescue migrants. History On 6 November 2017, the crew of a Sea-Watch ship rescued 58 people in an operation hindered b ...

and the Spanish

Proactiva Open Arms Proactiva Open Arms (POA) is a Spanish NGO devoted to search and rescue (SAR) at sea. Set up in October 2015, it carried out its first rescue action that same month from its base on the Greek island of Lesbos. As well as maintaining a permanent b ...

(POA).

Technical

In addition to her sailing capability, ''Astral'' has motor power from two 300hp

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

diesel engines. Her speed is given as 10knots (cruising) and 12knots (maximum); her beam is 7.22m and her draught 4.1m Prior to conversion for rescue operations, she had been refitted in 2009.

Film

''Astral'' featured in a documentary which was recorded on board during the same month that MSH received her by for ''

Salvados ''Salvados'' ("Saved") is a Spanish news show hosted and directed from 2008 to 2019 by Jordi Évole and later by Gonzo. It airs Sunday nights on laSexta. History ''Salvados por la campaña'' and first season ''Salvados'' started in 2008 as ''Sal ...

'', directed by Évole for Atresmedia Televisión. The box office takings from the documentary, shown at cinemas throughout

Catalunya Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the northe ...

before being broadcast on TV, were earmarked in their entirety for MSH.

Selected reports of SAR activities

On one day in August 2016, ''Astral'' took on some 200 refugees. A year later, formally announcing their support for Proactiva Open Arms, the Group described ''Astral'' as a 'flagship' for the rescue of refugees. In August 2019, the ''Astral'' was reported to have saved 157 persons on a single mission. At the end of 2016, ''Astral'' was augmented by the acquisition by POA of ''

Golfo Azzurro The North Sea trawler MS ''Golfo Azzurro'' was launched in 1987 as the ''Maarten Cornelis'', and was the first trawler in the Netherlands equipped with the EUR SumWing. From 2016-2017 it was chartered by the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms a ...

'', a fishing trawler 43 metres in length and 8 metres beam."La oenegé Proactiva Open Arms cambia el 'Astral' por un barco más grande para el rescate de inmigrantes."
'' El Periódico''. Retrieved 27 August 2017. However MSH continued to use the ''Astral'' in the Mediterranean, and in June 2020 when ''Astral'' returned to POA activity in the Mediterranean, Òscar Camps, head of MSH, tweeted that 2020 would be ''Astral's'' fourth year in the Mediterranean.(In Spanish.
"A pesar de todo y por cuarto año consecutivo Astral vuelve a entrar en el Mediterraneo"
(Òscar Camps) (''tr. "In spite of everything and for the fourth consecutive year Astral re-enters the Mediterranean"'')

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

Awards

The ''Astral'' received the ALBA Human Rights Award in April 2017.Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms receives ALBA Human Rights Award
17 April 2017 ''aldianews.com'', accessed 17 June 2021

References

{{Reflist European migrant crisis Immigrant rights activism Humanitarian aid organizations in Europe Refugee aid organizations in Europe