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MY Age of Union
Ship
Ship
| Field | Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| display_title | MY *Age of Union* | ||
| section1 | {{Infobox ship/image | ||
| image | Sea Shepherd Sam Simon PB.JPG | ||
| image_caption | *Age of Union* in 2014 as *Sam Simon* | ||
| section2 | {{Infobox ship/career | ||
| country | Japan | ||
| flag | [[File:Flag of Japan.svg | 60px | Japanese flag]] |
| name | Seifu Maru | ||
| owner | Japan Meteorological Agency | ||
| operator | Maizuru Marine Observatory | ||
| builder | Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co Ltd | ||
| yard_number | 3035 | ||
| laid_down | 6 April 1992 | ||
| launched | 11 August 1992 | ||
| christened | 1993 | ||
| completed | 22 January 1993 | ||
| in_service | 1993–2010 | ||
| homeport | Maizuru, Kyoto | ||
| identification | |||
| fate | Sold in 2010 | ||
| section3 | {{Infobox ship/career | ||
| hide_header | title | ||
| country | Japan | ||
| flag | [[File:Flag of Japan.svg | 60px | Japanese flag]] |
| name | Kaiko Maru No. 8 | ||
| owner | Offshore Operation Co., Ltd | ||
| acquired | 2010 | ||
| in_service | 2010–2012 | ||
| renamed | 2010 | ||
| identification | *Call sign: JIVB | ||
| *<ref name | "marinetraffic" / | ||
| fate | Sold in 2012 | ||
| section4 | {{Infobox ship/career | ||
| hide_header | title | ||
| country | Tuvalu | ||
| flag | [[File:Flag of Tuvalu.svg | 60px | Tuvalu flag]] |
| name | *New Atlantis* | ||
| owner | New Atlantis Ventures LLC | ||
| registry | Funafuti | ||
| acquired | September 2012 | ||
| in_service | September 2012 – December 2012 | ||
| identification | *Call sign: T2FS4 | ||
| *<ref name | "marinetraffic" / | ||
| fate | Management assumed by Sea Shepherd Conservation Society; transferred to Australian register | ||
| section5 | {{Infobox ship/career | ||
| hide_header | title | ||
| country | Australia | ||
| flag | [[File:Civil Ensign of Australia.svg | 60px | Australian flag]] |
| name | *Sam Simon* | ||
| namesake | Sam Simon | ||
| owner | New Atlantis Ventures LLC | ||
| operator | Sea Shepherd Conservation Society | ||
| registry | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | ||
| acquired | |||
| in_service | 2012–2013 | ||
| identification | Call sign: VJN4108 | ||
| status | Re-Flagged to the Netherlands | ||
| section6 | {{Infobox ship/career | ||
| hide_header | title | ||
| country | Netherlands | ||
| flag | [[File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg | 60px | Dutch Flag]] |
| name | *2013–2022: | ||
| registry | Rotterdam, Netherlands | ||
| owner | New Atlantis Ventures LLC | ||
| operator | Sea Shepherd Conservation Society | ||
| in_service | 2013–present | ||
| identification | *IMO: 9053452 | ||
| *<ref name | "marinetraffic" / | ||
| status | |||
| section7 | {{Infobox ship/characteristics | ||
| class | Research/Survey Vessel | ||
| tonnage | |||
| length | 55.5 m loa | ||
| beam | 9.8 m | ||
| draught | 3.50 m | ||
| depth | 4.30 m | ||
| power | One 6-cylinder diesel by Akasaka Diesel Ltd, Japan. 1800 hp | ||
| propulsion | Single shaft; controllable-pitch propeller | ||
| speed | 12.9 kn – 18 kn | ||
| capacity | 200 tons fuel | ||
| crew | 43 |
-
since 2022: MY Age of Union
is a vessel of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society fleet, the ship was previously named after American television producer and writer Sam Simon, who donated the money to purchase the vessel. The ship's identity was kept secret, to be revealed when she met the Japanese whaling fleet in 2012, but was identified when her registration was discovered on the Australian Maritime Safety Authority's list of registered ships.
Age of Union is the former Japanese weather survey ship Kaiko Maru No 8. Sea Shepherd paid the Government of Japan AUD $2,000,000 for the vessel. She was renamed '*MV New Atlantis''' shortly before being moved to Brisbane, Queensland. She was subsequently re-registered under the Australian flag as a pleasure craft called *Sam Simon''.
Service
Age of Union was built by Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co Ltd in Tokyo, Japan as Seifu Maru (清風丸, Seifū Maru – meaning cool breeze), a marine meteorological and oceanographic observation ship. The purpose of Seifu Maru and her sister ships was to conduct observations of the pollution affecting the marine environment in the waters around Japan and the western North Pacific, covering greenhouse gases, ozone-depleting substances, heavy metals, and oils. The Japan Meteorological Agency operated five ships: Chofu Maru (長風丸, 1987), Kofu Maru (高風丸, 1988), Seifu Maru (清風丸, 1993), Ryofu Maru (凌風丸, 1995) and Keifu Maru (啓風丸, 2000). Seifu Maru was operated by the Maizuru Marine Observatory and worked in the Sea of Japan. The Japanese ARGO Program (アルゴ計画) was completed and the un-needed vessel was sold to Offshore Operation Co. Ltd and was renamed Kaiko Maru No 8 in 2010.
In September 2012, Kaiko Maru was purchased by New Atlantis Ventures LLC, based in Wilmington, Delaware USA (a shell corporation of Sea Shepherd), and renamed New Atlantis, registered under the flag of Tuvalu. In December 2012, New Atlantis was renamed Sam Simon. $500,000 of upgrades for increased speed and range were undertaken in Brisbane, where she was docked and supplies were taken on board for the voyage to the whale sanctuary. The vessel was publicly unveiled in Hobart, Tasmania in December 2012.
On February 20, 2013, the Japanese whaling ship Nisshin Maru collided with Sam Simon, and multiple times in a confrontation in the Southern Ocean, north of Australia's Casey Research Station in Antarctica.
The MY Sam Simon currently operates in Europe and West Africa. In Europe, the Sam Simon crew are filming the activities of trawler type vessels in an attempt to draw attention to dolphin bycatch (dolphins unintentionally caught in the nets of the trawlers). In West Africa, the Sam Simon crew are partnering with several Governments to stop illegal fishing happening within West African waters.
As from 24 May 2021, the MY Sam Simon has been sighted in the Port of Gibraltar for a technical call.
Sam Simon was renamed Age of Union in January 2022 after a $4.5 million donation by Dax Dasilva.
References
References
- (1994). "430t Type Marine Meteorological and Oceanographical Observation Ship, Seifu Maru". TRID Database.
- "Sam Simon". [[IHS Inc..
- (January 2018). "Kaiko Maru No. 8". MarineTraffic.com.
- "List of Registered Ships". [[Australian Maritime Safety Authority]].
- Darby, Andrew. (11 December 2012). "Japanese duped in $2m ship purchase". [[WAtoday]].
- Darby, Andrew. (11 December 2012). "Red herrings allow protest group to target Japan's whaling fleet". [[The Sydney Morning Herald]].
- Maclean, Locky. (10 December 2012). "The SSS Sam Simon is Unveiled in Hobart, Tasmania". [[Sea Shepherd Conservation Society]].
- Choe, Kim. (February 21, 2013). "Sea Shepherd claims victory over whalers". 3 News NZ.
- (5 January 2022). "Sea Shepherd Welcomes Age of Union to the Fleet".
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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