 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Polarfront |
| Owner | Latitude Blanche |
| Port of registry | Marseille, France |
| Builder |
|
| Yard number | 57 |
| Laid down | 1 August 1975[1] |
| Launched | 1 March 1976[1] |
| Completed | 14 December 1976[1] |
| Identification | |
| Status | In service |
| General characteristics[1] | |
| Type | Expedition ship |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 54.25 m (178 ft) |
| Beam | 10 m (33 ft) |
| Draft | 4.368 m (14 ft) |
| Depth | 7.87 m (26 ft) |
| Ice class | DNV ICE-C |
| Installed power | Wichmann 5AX |
| Propulsion | Single shaft;controllable-pitch propeller |
MSPolarfront was a Norwegianweather ship located in theNorth Atlantic Ocean. It was the last remaining weather ship in the world, maintained by theNorwegian Meteorological Institute.
A weather ship is aship stationed in mid-ocean to makemeteorological observations forweather forecasting. Since the 1960s this role has been largely superseded bysatellites, long-rangeaircraft andweather buoys.
MSPolarfront was known as weather station M ("Mike"), and was located at 66°N, 02°E. Standard meteorological observations were performed on an hourly basis from the beginning of the 1960s.
On 27 February 2009, the cancellation of the station was announced.[2] MSPolarfront was removed from service on 1 January 2010.
Since 28 June 2017, MSPolarfront has been owned and operated by the French shipping company Latitude Blanche for expedition purposes in high latitudes.
TheInternational Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) took the responsibility to operate an international network of ocean weather stations in the north Atlantic. The network was established in 1948 and consisted of 13 stations, including station M. The need for weather ships from civil aviation decreased gradually while meteorological societies still needed observations from the oceans. In 1974 theWorld Meteorological Organization (WMO) took responsibility for the four remaining stations. The international agreement about weather ships was ended in 1990. TheUnited Kingdom andNorway continued the operation of one station each, station L ("Lima"), west ofScotland, and station M, in theNorwegian Sea. Station L was ended in the middle of the 1990s. Thus station M was the only one still remaining.
The first two weather ships to man station M werePolarfront I andPolarfront II. The Norwegian authorities were the ship owners. The ships were rebuiltRoyal Navycorvettes (HMS Saxifrage andHMS Bryony). They served until 1974 and 1976, respectively. In 1974 the Norwegian state made an agreement with the shipping company Misje Offshore Marine AS inBergen to hire a new and modern ship, which was given the namePolarfront.
For several years the ship alternated with the Dutch weather shipCumulus to staff station M. From 1986 onPolarfront staffed station M alone. Each monthPolarfront left the station for one to two days to take on a new crew and new supplies. Once a year, usually in early October, the ship stayed in its home port for a week to carry out maintenance.