RV Sonne (German for 'Sun') is a former German fishing trawler converted into a research vessel by Schichau Unterweser AG, doing mostly geoscience-related work for a variety of commercial and scientific clients. She was registered in Bremen.[1] In 2015 she was sold to the Argentine institute CONICET and was renamed ARA Austral (Q-21).[2][3] A new geoscientific research ship, also called RV Sonne, replaced her role in Germany that same year.[4]
Career
Rickmers Werft built Sonne in 1969 as a stern trawler and delivered her to Hochseefischerei Nordstern. From her homeport of Bremerhaven she operated mainly in the waters around Iceland, Greenland and Labrador.
Sonne was converted for use in a scientific exploration role by Schichau Unterweser AG in 1977 and by Rickmers Werft in 1978. In 1991 Schichau-Seebeck-Werft lengthened and modernized her.[1]
An order worth €124.4 million for a new geoscientific research ship was placed by the German federal ministry for education and research (90%) together with the coastal states Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Bremen and Hamburg (10%) in May 2011. The new ship, also called Sonne, was built in Meyer Werft in Papenburg, and replaced the old Sonne in 2015.[4] Its launch took place on 5 April 2014.[5]
The last German cruise of RV Sonne took place in August 2014, after which she was retired from German scientific use.[citation needed]
Argentine service
She was sold to the Argentinian institute CONICET for € 5.150.000 and she arrived in the Argentine Navy naval base at Mar del Plata in February 2015. In June she was renamed ARA Austral (Q-21). Austral is operated by a naval crew, on behalf of the civilian agency CONICET.[2][3]
In popular culture
Sonne appears in Frank Schätzing's novel The Swarm in connection with methane measurements off the Norwegian coast.[6]
See also
- RV Sonne (2014) - the successor of RV Sonne
References
Notes
- ^ a b "RV Sonne - datasheet in English language" (PDF, 1.6 MB). www.rf-bremen.com. RF Forschungsschiffahrt GmbH. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
- ^ a b Periodico Tribuna - El Gobierno compró buque nuevo (y miles de litros de alcohol para celebrar)
- ^ a b Telam - La Presidenta encabezó la presentación del buque de investigación ARA Austral
- ^ a b Nestler, Ralf (31 May 2011). "Sonnenaufgang für die Meeresforscher" [Sunrise for marine researchers]. www.tagesspiegel.de (in German). Der Tagesspiegel. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
- ^ "Das neue Forschungsschiff "Sonne" verlässt das Baudock I der MEYER WERFT". Retrieved 2014-04-06.
- ^ Frank Schätzing. The Swarm. p. Chapter "April 22nd".
Bibliography
External links
- Sonne homepage (German)
- RF Forschungsschiffahrt (homepage of the shipping company operating the Sonne)
- Research Vessel Sonne Archived 2019-07-15 at the Wayback Machine (by German Marine Research Consortium)
- Cruise reports Sonne (list of all cruises with links to cruise reports and data)
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