Navigation – Page 2 – Professional Mariner

27 Dec

WRDA includes authorization to deepen Tacoma waterway

Rich MillerMaritime NewsNavigation, shipping

(SEATTLE) — President Biden signed the 2022 Water Resources and Development Act (WRDA) on Dec. 23, which lawmakers included in the $858 billion National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2023. This action includes authorizing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to proceed with a wider and deeper waterway in Tacoma, Wash. The bill authorizes $140 million for the Tacoma…

19 Dec

Sea Machines installs AI system on Coast Guard cutter

Rich MillerMaritime NewsNavigation, U.S. Coast Guard

(BOSTON) — Sea Machines Robotics, an industry leader in pioneering maritime autonomy and perception systems, has installed its new AI-ris computer vision product on board a U.S. Coast Guard 270-foot Famous-class medium endurance cutter ahead of the vessel’s upcoming deployment. AI-ris uses artificial intelligence to identify and track visual targets of interest. This installation was made possible under an ongoing…

27 Oct

NOAA’s Backyard Buoys to improve ocean data access

Rich MillerMaritime NewsNavigation, safety

(WASHINGTON) — A new ocean science effort to improve equity and inclusion is underway, thanks to a $4.98 million cooperative agreement involving three regional associations of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System, which is led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The National Science Foundation (NSF) provided the funds through a cooperative agreement for Backyard Buoys, a project…

21 Oct

Barges back up as Mississippi River keeps dropping

Rich MillerMaritime Newsbrownwater, Navigation, Tugboats and towing

(WASHINGTON) — Water levels on the Mississippi River normally decline in the fall and winter, but not by nearly as much as they did in October. Lack of rain in the Ohio River Valley and Upper Mississippi River Valley in recent weeks caused river water to drop to levels not seen in more than a decade along key parts of…

06 Oct

Birdon gets contract for up to 27 inland buoy tenders

Rich MillerMaritime Newsbrownwater, Navigation, shipbuilding

(WASHINGTON) – The Coast Guard Waterways Commerce Cutter (WCC) Program has awarded Birdon America of Denver, Colo., an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity firm fixed-price contract with economic price adjustments for the detail design and construction of its river buoy and inland construction tenders. The initial award is worth $28.49 million. The contract includes options for the construction of 16 river buoy tenders…

04 Oct

Opinion: Coast Guard must do more to restore navigational aids on Western rivers

Rich MillerMaritime Newsbrownwater, Navigation, U.S. Coast Guard

By Capt. Gregory L. Smith Imagine for a second driving your car through traffic in a strange city with missing or misleading road signs, traffic lights and lane markings. Over the past decade, that is exactly the kind of navigation Western river mariners have increasingly been expected to perform. Technology that would permit 100 percent virtual aids to navigation (ATONs) may become available…

19 Sep

Study calls for Pacific ‘fairways’ for safer navigation

Rich MillerMaritime NewsNavigation, U.S. Coast Guard

(ALAMEDA, Calif.) — The U.S. Coast Guard is requesting public comment on the draft Pacific Coast Port Access Route Study (PAC-PARS). This is the first comprehensive evaluation of vessel traffic patterns in waters off the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington. A Federal Register notice of availability for the draft PAC-PARS has been opened for comment. Comments and related materials…

03 May

Largest high-speed ferry In U.S. features Furuno electronics

Rich MillerIndustry NewsNavigation, technology

(CAMAS, Wash.) — Delivered in December, Seastreak Courageous, the largest capacity high-speed ferry in the United States, is guided by Furuno marine electronics. Built by Midship Marine in Harvey, La., the 720-passenger vessel was delivered to its home terminal in New Jersey. Courageous boasts many upgrades from earlier designs in the Seastreak fleet, including a comprehensive suite of Furuno electronics…