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We hope everyone is still feeling full from Christmas and that batteries in kids toys are starting to run low. AIVIQ and her crew arrived into Newcomb Bay at around 0100 h this morning so the team woke to spectacular views. VL Cam took the time to sit outside and have a morning 0515 h shot of coffee looking out onto Casey station as the sun sat just above the hill. A great way to start a week of refuelling operations.
One of the great advantages of working with a ship as advanced as AIVIQ is the vessel comes with Dynamic Positioning or DP. DP is a computer-controlled system to automatically maintain a vessel's position and heading by using its own propellers and thrusters. Position reference sensors, combined with wind sensors, motion sensors and gyrocompasses, provide information to the computer pertaining to the vessel's position and the magnitude and direction of environmental forces affecting its position.
In super simple terms, DP allows the ship to maintain its position extremely accurately. AIVIQ is able to maintain its position with an error margin of around 1m in strong winds and currents. DP also means that the ships propulsions systems are instantaneously available to react to all emergencies. This is different to a ship at anchor who requires time to start up engines and generators. Why does all this matter? It means AIVIQ is able to get much closer to Casey Station than a vessel at anchor with no additional risk. Closer to station means a shorter hose length which means a shorter pump time.
Today Casey Station is having a rest day which does not affect the team onboard as there is plenty of work to be done. The focus for the refuelling team today is working with the ship's crew to reorganise all refuelling equipment on-board in preparation for deployment and pumping. Containers and equipment will be moved from their transit to operational locations and equipment will be unpacked, checked and repacked into bulker bags for movement to the Casey wharf tomorrow.
The boating team will be deploying their three Inflatable Rubber Boats (IRB's) onto the water, familiarising new team members, installing a guest line, and installing ice lines.
A guest line is a rope attached to the side of vessel for IRB crew to hold onto as they come alongside. Ice lines are large ropes which extend from land around the wharf to islands and anchor points in Newcomb Bay. The Ice Lines will fan out like a triangle from the wharf and run either side of AIVIQ. The Ice Lines act as a floating fence and prevent most, not all, ice from entering the area where the fuel hose runs. This reduces the risk of damage to the hose and subsequent fuel leak.
Trent and Cam
Map
A map showing Australia and Antarctica. The map shows the journey of one voyage that has occured in the season, with each route highlighted in a distinct colour.