RV ''The Princess Royal'' is a

research vessel A research vessel (RV or R/V) is a ship or boat designed, modified, or equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel but others require a dedicated ...

owned and operated by

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...

as part of the School of Marine Science and Technology. Designed by in-house

naval architect This is the top category for all articles related to architecture and its practitioners. {{Commons category, Architecture occupations Design occupations Architecture, Occupations ...

s from the school, ''The Princess Royal'' replaced the previous RV ''Bernicia'' as the school's research vessel.

Design

''The Princess Royal'' has a twin hull, deep-vee form with each hull having a bulbous bow. The hull form aims to improve seakeeping, stability and fuel efficiency and was designed by the School of Marine Science and Technology at

. The ship was built by Alnmarintec in Blyth to MCA category 2 requirements and is constructed from aluminium alloy. ''The Princess Royal'' is equipped with a 6.5 tonne-metre knuckle boom crane, a 2 tonne hydraulic A-frame, two trawl winches, a pot hauler two ROV winches and a 5-metre

Rigid Inflatable Boat A rigid inflatable boat (RIB), also rigid-hull inflatable boat or rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB), is a lightweight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a rigid hull bottom joined to side-forming air tubes that are ...

. Powering the vessel are two MAN D2676 diesel engines coupled to two fixed-pitch propellers.

Namesake

''The Princess Royal'' is named after

Princess Anne Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950), is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of K ...

who christened the ship during a ceremony in Blyth on 4 February 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:The Princess Royal, RV Newcastle University Research vessels of the United Kingdom 2011 ships