''Aurora Australis'' was an Australian
icebreaker
An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...
. Built by
Carrington Slipways and launched in 1989, the vessel is owned by
P&O Maritime Services
P&O Maritime Logistics (formerly known as ''P&O Maritime'') has been operating in the maritime industry since the 1960s. The company has evolved over the years, they are active in the offshore renewables space and provide a wide variety vessels t ...
. It was regularly chartered by the
Australian Antarctic Division
The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) is a division of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. The Division undertakes science programs and research projects to contribute to an understanding of Antarctica and the ...
(AAD) for research cruises in
Antarctic
The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...
waters and to support Australian bases in Antarctica.
Design and construction
Designed as a multi-purpose research and resupply ship, ''Aurora Australis'' was built by
Carrington Slipways in
Tomago
Tomago is a combined industrial/semi-rural suburb of the Port Stephens local government area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located just north of the Hunter River and west of the body of water known as Fullerton Cove. ...
.
The vessel was launched in September 1989.
[
''Aurora Australis'' is long, and has a beam of , draught of and moulded depth of . Her displacement is 8,158 tons, ]gross tonnage
Gross tonnage (GT, G.T. or gt) is a nonlinear measure of a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage. Neither gross tonnage nor gross register tonnage should be confused with measures of mass or weigh ...
6,574 and deadweight tonnage
Deadweight tonnage (also known as deadweight; abbreviated to DWT, D.W.T., d.w.t., or dwt) or tons deadweight (DWT) is a measure of how much weight a ship can carry. It is the sum of the weights of cargo, fuel, fresh water, ballast water, provi ...
3,911 tons.[ Her propulsion machinery consists of two ]Wärtsilä
Wärtsilä Oyj Abp (), trading internationally as Wärtsilä Corporation, is a Finnish company which manufactures and services power sources and other equipment in the marine and energy markets. The core products of Wärtsilä include technol ...
medium-speed diesel engines in father-son arrangement, one 16-cylinder 16V32D producing 5,500 kW and one 12-cylinder 12V32D producing 4,500 kW. Both engines are coupled to a single shaft through a reduction gear, driving a single, left-hand-turning controllable-pitch propeller.[ Slow speed manoeuvring is achieved with three manoeuvring thrusters, one forward and two aft.] ''Aurora Australis'' has a maximum speed of , and a cruising speed of .[ The vessel can break level ice up to thick at .][Departmental investigation into the engine room fire onboard the Australian Antarctic Research and Supply Vessel Aurora Australis at the Antarctic ice edge on 22 July 1998](_blank)
. MIIU. Retrieved 2 April 2012
''Aurora Australis'' had a crew of 24 and could carry up to 116 passengers accommodated in three or four-bunk cabins with attached bathrooms.[ The ship has a cargo capacity of for break bulk or 29 twenty-foot equivalent containers, and a supply tank that can hold of fuel. The ship is fitted with laboratories for biological, meteorological, and oceanographic research, and was designed with a trawl deck for the deployment and recovery of research instruments while at sea.][ The ship's hangar and helideck allow for the operation of up to three helicopters,][ usually Eurocopter Squirrels or ]Sikorsky S-76
The Sikorsky S-76 is a medium-size commercial utility helicopter designed and produced by the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. It is the company's first helicopter specifically developed for the civilian market.
The S-76 w ...
s.
Operations
''Aurora Australis'' is chartered by the AAD over the southern summer for research purposes, and to support the Antarctic bases operated by the AAD.[ The vessel spent most winters in port in ]Hobart
Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...
, as the AAD headquarters is in the nearby town of Kingston. P&O sometimes chartered the ship for other work during winter.
On 8 May 2011, ''Aurora Australis'' was chartered by the Department of Defence Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to:
Current departments of defence
* Department of Defence (Australia)
* Department of National Defence (Canada)
* Department of Defence (Ireland)
* Department of National Defense (Philipp ...
for a two-month deployment (ending 30 June) as an amphibious transport ship supporting the Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...
.[ The charter, costing A$3.375 million, was to assist in the Australian government response to humanitarian crises and natural disasters that occurred while the naval heavy lift ship underwent maintenance.]
In late December 2013, ''Aurora Australis'', Chinese research vessel ''Xuě Lóng'' and French icebreaker '' L'Astrolabe'' attempted to rescue ''Akademik Shokalskiy
MV ''Akademik Shokalskiy'' (russian: Академик Шокальский) is an ''Akademik Shuleykin''-class ice-strengthened ship, built in Finland in 1982 and originally used for oceanographic research. In 1998 she was fully refurbished to s ...
'', which had become stranded in thick Antarctic ice in Watt Bay. None of the three ships were able to reach the Russian icebreaker, with ''Aurora Australis'' aborting efforts on the morning of 30 December, due to the risk of the ship also becoming stuck.[ On 2 February, the 52 passengers from ''Akademik Shokalskiy'' were transported by helicopter to ''Aurora Australis'' by ''Xuě Lóng''s helicopter (the Chinese icebreaker having become trapped as well).] After the rescue, ''Aurora Australis'' continued on her original mission to resupply Casey Station
Casey Station, commonly called Casey, is one of three permanent stations and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Casey lies on the northern side of the Bailey Peninsula (Antarctica), Bailey Peninsu ...
, before returning to Hobart on 22 January.
The ''Aurora Australis'' returned from its final voyage in March 2020. After 31 years of service to the Australian Antarctic Program, the last trip was a two-week voyage to resupply Macquarie Island and transport expeditioners to the south. Suggestions have been made that the ship could be used as an emergency vessel if acquired by the Australian Government. Another possible use that was suggested for the ship was as an Antarctic-themed museum berthed in Hobart. A not-for-profit organisation, the Aurora Australis Foundation, was established to explore this option. However, by June 2020 it looked like the most likely outcome for the ''Aurora Australis'' was to be sold to the Government of Argentina for further Antarctic deployment.
Engine Room Fire
At 2.25am on 22 July 1998 whilst en route to Antarctica a fire broke out in the engine room. The researchers were on the first winter voyage to the Antarctic, a seven-week expedition to explore, the Mertz Glacier Polynya.
On 14 January 1999 whilst en route to Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...
a fire caused by leaking high pressure diesel igniting on the hot STBD main engine caused a major fire. The fire resulted in zero visibility in the engine room and was suppressed by the release of halonium ion
A halonium ion is any onium ion containing a halogen atom carrying a positive charge. This cation has the general structure where X is any halogen and no restrictions on R, this structure can be cyclic or an open chain molecular structure. Halo ...
fire suppression system
Fire suppression systems are used to extinguish, control, or in some cases, entirely prevent fires from spreading or occurring. Fire suppression systems have an incredibly large variety of applications, and as such, there are many different types ...
. Re-entry to the compartment resulted in successful restoration of power and propulsion to the ship and it returned to Fremantle
Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
under its own power for an investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is Australia's national transport safety investigator. The ATSB is the federal government body responsible for investigating transport-related accidents and incidents within Australia. It covers air ...
and major repairs.
Grounding
On 24 February 2016, the vessel was damaged when it ran aground in Horseshoe Harbour, near Mawson Station
The Mawson Station, commonly called Mawson, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Mawson lies in Holme Bay in Mac. Robertson Land, East Antarctica in the Austra ...
, Antarctica, during a blizzard, after a shackle on a forward mooring line came undone, causing the other three lines to break. It was refloated on 27 February 2016 and returned to Western Australia for repairs.
Replacement
In October 2015, the Australian government announced a plan to acquire a new icebreaker to replace ''Aurora Australis'' by 2019. ''Nuyina'' entered service in 2021.[Boaty McBoatface: Australia sees the light on naming new icebreaker after southern aurora](_blank)
''ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
'', 29 September 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
''Aurora Australis'' was decommissioned in 2020, amid attempts to retain the vessel in Hobart as a floating museum. Although these efforts were unsuccessful, the ship's tender
A ship's tender, usually referred to as a tender, is a boat, or a larger ship, used to service or support other boats or ships. This is generally done by transporting people or supplies to and from shore or another ship.
A second and distinctl ...
, ''Aurora Australis II'', was acquired by the Aurora Australis Foundation with the aim of making it the centrepiece of an Australian Antarctic Museum.Aurora Australis II
Aurora Australis Foundation, 5 September 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
*
Webcam aboard ''Aurora Australis''
Breaking the Ice
– blog from ''Aurora Australis'' by Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
reporter Karen Barlow, during the January–February 2011 scientific trip to Mertz Glacier
Mertz Glacier () is a heavily crevassed glacier in George V Coast of East Antarctica. It is the source of a glacial prominence that historically has extended northward into the Southern Ocean, the ''Mertz Glacial Tongue''. It is named in honor ...
{{2016 shipwrecks
Icebreakers of Australia
1989 ships
Ships built in New South Wales
Australia and the Antarctic
Ships of P&O (company)
Research vessels of Australia
Maritime incidents in 2016