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RRS James Clark Ross was built by Swan Hunter Shipbuilders, Wallsend, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, UK and launched by H.M. The Queen on the 1 st December 1990. The vessel was named after Admiral Sir James Clark Ross, R.N. (1800-1862) who discovered the North Magnetic Pole in 1831. During 1840-43 he made three voyages to Antarctica in an attempt to reach the South Magnetic Pole, and to undertake a range of scientific studies of the region.
The vessel can be driven at a steady two knots through level sea ice one metre thick. To assist passage through heavy pack ice a compressed air system rolls the ship and prevents the ice from squeezing the hull. RRS James Clark Ross is equipped for geophysical studies, with a compressor bank to power a large seismic air gun array, a large aft" deck for deploying a wide range of equipment and a midships gantry. For biological studies, the vessel can deploy a wide range of sampling gear and benefits from modern underway instrumentation. The ship is designed with an extremely low noise signature to allow sensitive underwater acoustic equipment to operate effectively.
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| Vessel Ownership | ||||
| Vessel name: | RRS James Clark Ross | |||
| Vessel nationality: | United Kingdom | |||
| Homeport: | Grimsby, UK | |||
| Vessel owner: | British Antarctic Survey |  | ||
| Vessel operator: | British Antarctic Survey | |||
| Vessel web page: | http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/Living_and_Working/Transport/Ships/RRS_James_Clark_Ross.html | |||
| Vessel Activities and Operating Areas | ||||
| Vessel's main activity: | Oceanographic research | |||
| Vessel operating areas: | Arctic and Antarctic waters, in their respective summer seasons. | |||
| Primary Logistics Provider | ||||
| Organization: | British Antarctic Survey | |||
| Name and title of contact person: | unknown | |||
| Address: | British Antarctic Survey High Cross, Madingley Road CAMBRIDGE CB3 0ET United Kingdom | |||
| Telephone: | +44 (0)1223 221400 | |||
| Fax: | +44 (0)1223 362616 | |||
| E-mail: | science@bas.ac.uk | |||
| Contact person or agency web page: | http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/About_BAS/Cambridge/bas_contact.html | |||
| Primary Management Agency | ||||
| Organization: | Same as above | |||
| Scheduling Process | ||||
| Process description: | The BAS Field Operations Working Group (FOWG) meets twice a year, to review all field operations for the ensuing two years to examine their feasibility and safety. For BAS cruises, initial contacts are Divisional FOWG representatives. The focal point for non-BAS cruises is the BAS Head of Administration. For NERC cruises with UKORS technical support the initial contact in NERC Headquarters is the UKORS Marine Planning Officer | |||
| Vessel Characteristics | ||||
| Vessel type: | Oceanographic research vessel | |||
| Vessel length in meters: | 90.4 | |||
| Vessel length in feet: | 297 | |||
| Beam (Breadth) in meters: | 19 | |||
| Beam in feet: | 62 | |||
| Freeboard (deck to water) in meters: | 3.3 | |||
| Freeboard (deck to water) in feet: | 11 | |||
| Draft in meters: | 6.3 | |||
| Draft in feet: | 21 | |||
| Displacement GRT: | 5732 | |||
| Year built: | 1990 | |||
| ALIAS is seeking the following information about James Clark Ross. If you can help fill in these gaps, please contact ALIAS at: alias@arcus.org | ||||
| Height (topmast to water) in meters : | unknown | |||
| Science deck space (m) : | unknown | |||
| Vessel Performance and Capabilities | ||||
| Cruising speed (knots, open water): | 12 | |||
| Range in nautical miles: | 15000 | |||
| Range in km: | 27780 | |||
| Endurance (days): | 55 | |||
| Icebreaking capability: | One meter of ice at a speed of 2 knots | |||
| Propulsion power: | Type: Diesel-Electric 6.2 MW (8500 SHP), (single fixed pitch propeller) * Main Engines: 2 x Wartsila R32 (3.1 MW each), 2 x Wartsila R22 (1.0 MW each) * Thrusters: Both thruster units are of the 360 deg White Gill Type (Bow 10 tonnes & stern 4 tonnes) | |||
| Fuel capacity : | unknown | |||
| Accommodations | ||||
| Comments: | Investigators planning a cruise aboard James Clark Ross should discuss with BAS the number of support personnel that may be required for their planned science activities, before determining the number of berths that will be available for scientists. | |||
| Crew berths: | 26 | |||
| Scientist berths: | 50 | |||
| Communications and Data Systems | ||||
| Network: | One NetWare 4.11 server available running the following applications: Novell GroupWise 5.5 E-mail system Lotus 123 v 97 Minitab 13 Corel Perfect Office 2000 suite which comprises: - WordPerfect 9 - Quattro Pro 9 Network Associates VirusScan Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0 General Use PCs: Main Lab: 1 x 266 MHz MMX Pentium II PC with 64Mb RAM, 4GB Hard Disk, CD writer UIC Room: 1 x 200 MHz MMX Pentium II PC with 64Mb RAM, 13GB Hard Disk 2 x PIII 650 MHz PC with 128Mb RAM, 18GB Hard Disk 1 x PIII 800 MHz PC with 128Mb RAM, 18GB Hard Disk These run Windows NT 4.0 workstation with service pack 6 and are connected to the network. SCS REMOTE DISPLAYS The following remote SCS (data logging system) displays are available: 1 x UIC 1 x Winch Control Room 1 x Main Lab SIS Arcs displays (Navigational chart information from the Bridge) 1 x UIC 1 x Main Lab UNIX BASED FACILITIES 1) JRUB Function: ABC System ‘Level C’ Data Logging Machine (not for general use). L o c a t i o n : Computer Room. SUN Ultra 1, 128 Mbytes RAM, 1 x 2.1 Gbyte and 1 x 9 Gbyte hard disks, 17 inch colour monitor 1 x DDS1 DAT tape drive, Level B Tape drive (6150 QIC drive). 2) JRUF Function: General Purpose Machine. Location: Data Prep Room. SUN Ultra 60, dual processor 300Mhz, 512Mb RAM, 2 x internal 9 Gb hard disks A1000 Raid array with 80Gb usable space. DLT 4000 drive. DDS2 DAT drive (120m tapes), 20 inch colour monitor. 3) JRUG Function: Spare to JRUF. Same specification as JRUF with A1000 and monitor. 4) ‘Old’ JRUA Function: Old Comms e-mail system. SUN Sparc20 140. 5) ‘Old’ JRUE Function: Spare to JRUB. SUN Ultra 1, 192Mb RAM, 2 GB disk space. 6) 2 x X-TERMINALS Scientific Computer System (SCS) + Java Logging System. Tecktronics - 17 inch colour monitors Current devices being logged: a)Ashtech 3D GPS system b) Trimble GPS system with differential correction via Racal Skyfix system. c) Gyrocompass d) Ashtech GPS/GLONASS based positioning system. e) Simrad EA500 Bathymetric Echo Sounder f) Ships ultrasonic anemometer g) Ships Chernikeef electromagnetic speed log. h) Ocean logger (BAS designed environmental data logger) i) Ships Sperry Doppler speed log. j) Ships Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler Local Area Network Ethernet with mixture of BNC, AUI, TP LAN ports. (BNC ports are located in science working areas and TP ports located in data prep room. AUI ports are located in the cabins). Wide Area Network The JCR can connect to the outside world using the inmarsat system by a NERA satcom B transceiver, connected to JRUA via a 64Kb high speed data link. Satellite links are used for message transfer once per day when all e-mail and data is sent and received. GroupWise e-mail systems are the front end for ship’s users to send and receive e-mail. Data can be transferred via e-mail attachment or special data scheds can be arranged. | |||
| Laboratory Space | ||||
| Lab space: | James Clark Ross features 400 square meters ( 4,306 square feet ) of laboratory spaces, including: Wet lab Main Lab Chemistry lab Biochemistry lab Microbiology lab Preparation lab Additional science-related spaces include: Data prep room Computer room Electronics workshop Dark room Winch control room, containing CTD deck unit Underway instrumentation and control room | |||
| Science Support Equipment | ||||
| James Clark Ross is equipped with a semi-rigid inflatable skiff and a landing-craft type tender. | ||||
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| Onboard Science Equipment | ||||
| Acoustic/Bathymetric Equipment: | EK500 Echo Sounder This echo sounder is designed for the location of fish/krill and similar species. It operates on any or all of three frequencies 38, 120 & 200 kHz. There are hull-mounted and towed-fish transducers. The equipment and display reside in the UIC Room. EA500 Echo Sounder A bathymetric echo sounder located on the bridge of the ship and operating at 12 kHz. The output is logged by the ship's computing system. The echo sounder is installed for use by ships' officers as a navigation aid and hydrographic surveying tool. 10 kHz Echo Sounder Bathymetric echo sounder operating at 10 kHz. This equipment is located in the UIC Room with a display computer. There are hull-mounted and towed-fish transducers. In addition to waterfall screen display, the output is recorded on paper using a Waverley Thermal Linescan Recorder type 3710. The 10 kHz signal can also be used for communication with seabed instruments (acoustic releases etc.) Sub bottom profiler A Kongsberg Simrad parametric instrument is located in the UIC Room. The transducer array is hullmounted. Multibeam A Kongsberg Simrad EM120 1° x 1° swath bathymetry is installed in the UIC Room. The transducer arrays are mounted within the hull. Autosal This is a model 8400B and is portable within the ship. ADCP The ADCP is a 150 kHz narrow band acoustic Doppler current profiler which records the direction and speed of water under the ship whilst it is in motion. The transducers are installed in an oil filled sea chest in the hull of the ship. The equipment is manufactured by RD Instruments. The data are recorded on a PC but not centrally logged. | |||
| Other Equipment: | Expendable Bathy-Thermograph The XBT records temperature against depth using a disposable probe. The system is manufactured by Sippican and is a Mk9 unit. The data are recorded on a PC but not centrally logged. Down Wire Net Monitoring (DWNM) For monitoring deployed nets and controlling scientific sample nets. Furuno Sonar A colour scanning sonar model CSH-50/60. There is a display on the bridge and another in the UIC room. Heave, Pitch & Roll Sensor The instrument is manufactured by TSS and is a model 335. The output is logged. Wind Speed & direction An ultrasonic device manufactured by Gill. The sensor is located on the foremast with the display on the bridge. The output is logged by the ship's central computers. Ultra High Purity (UHP) Water Supply The equipment provides ultra high purity water. It is manufactured by Millipore. Liquid Scintillation System The Beckman LS6000SC series liquid scintillation system is a three channel micro-processor controlled spectrometer for radio nuclide measurement with a capacity for 336 standard vials or 648 miniature vials. Ocean Logger A 'compound' instrument comprising many sensors, all controlled and linked to a central PC in the UIC Room. The output is logged by the ship's central computers. The instrument comprises the following components: | |||
| CTD Equipment | ||||
| Onboard CTD equipment: | The CTD system (Seabird 911, 12 x 12 litre bottles) comprises Neil Brown sensor and rosette, Neil Brown 1150 Data terminal and a display computer. The data are centrally logged. | |||
| A-Frames | ||||
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| Onboard A-Frames: | 2 large A-Frames (Gantries) SWL 20 tons, one at the stern, and one midships. 1 small gantry, forward, for the Precision Echo Sounder |  | ||
| Cranes | ||||
| Onboard cranes: | There are 2 science cranes, one at the stern, and one on the forward Upper Deck. Large cargo cranes are located on the Forcastle Deck, and the aft end of the Boat Deck. | |||
| Winches, Wires and Cables | ||||
| Electro-magnetic wires: | Conducting cable: 8,000 meters | |||
| Other wires and cables: | Steel wire: 8,000 meters | |||
| Other Science Features | ||||
| Other science-related features: | Dynamic Positioning System Simrad DPS Dynamic Positioning System to automatically control the position of the ship to a reference point or marker. Many other functions available to aid accurate positioning of ship for science activities. Uses quantity 2 of Ashtec G12 GPS as reference sources. | |||
Fluorometer: a Turner Designs fluorometer is located in the Prep Lab.
PAR sensor: the Didcot DRPI sensor measures Photosynthetically Active Radiation and is mounted on the foremast.
TIR sensor: the Kipp & Zonen CM5 sensor measures Total Incident Radiation and is mounted on the foremast.
Salinity: a Sea-Bird SBE21 thermosalinograph, located in the Prep Lab, working from the Uncontaminated Seawater system.
Sea surface temperature: There are two separate sea temperature sensors. The 'Met Office' PRT is mounted in the hull of the ship and is available continuously. The “scientific” PRT is mounted just inside the Uncontaminated Seawater inlet. The scientific sensor is more accurate but needs the Uncontaminated Seawater system to be running.
Air temperature: Vector T351 temperature sensor mounted on the foremast.
Air pressure: Vaisala PA11 digital barometer located in the UIC room.
Humidity: Vaisala HMP 35A mounted on the foremast.