New research vessel will be named Aurora
The Roman goddess Aurora gives name to Aarhus University's new research vessel which from the summer of 2014 will sail out to the four corners of the world to seek enlightenment. The keel has been laid and the new state of the art vessel begins to take shape in the yard.
"The keel on the 28 meterlong ship has just been completed and construction is progressing according to plan. Aurora is a very flexible ship that can be adapted for many different tasks. She can really reinvent herself every morning", says Torben Vang, skipper of the new research vessel.
The Hvide Sande Ship & Bådebyggeri are building the ship and get the hull assembled in Szczecin, Poland. In June the hull will be transported to Hvide Sande to be furnished and equipped with a volume of scientific equipment.
The contract with the yard was signed on 27 June 2012. The total cost is 40 million kroner, of which 30 million comes from the Board of Research and Innovation. The finished ship will be in the hands of University of Aarhus on 17 February, 2014.
The ship is the first newly constructed Danish research ship since Dana was built over 30 years ago. The new vessel gives a better opportunity to examine and understand ecosystems in the oceans, for the benefit of all Danish marine scientists and a host of new students. Fourteen people may remain on board for up to ten days.
"There is no doubt that Danish marine scientists will get significantly better options when Aurora head for unknown horizons from the summer of 2014", says Torben Vang, who is looking forward to welcoming researchers on much better, bigger and quite modern sailing research facilities.
Aurora is the Roman goddess of dawn. She renews herself every morning. The sun is her brother and her sister is the moon. The four winds north, south, east and west are her sons.
Source: University of Aarhus, Science and Technology
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