A very special vessel appeared with high-tech performance of a 360-degree revolution in place, horizontal moving, and keeping its position automatically without being blown by wind or wave.
Pukyong National University held a launching ceremony of ‘Naraho,’ a new marine research vessel (Captain. Kim Jung Chang) at the reclamation dock in Yongho-dong on the September 3rd.
The vessel of 1,494 ton, 70.7m long and 13.5m wide is going to conduct boarding practices for students and marine research and investigation. It navigates at a speed of 14.3 knot maximum, accommodating 66 crew members and trainees. The ship was built by Han Jin Heavy Industries & Construction Co., Ltd, with investigation of 32,600,000,000 won for 32 months from October 2012.
The most feature of Naraho is an installation of Dynamic Positioning System (DPS), which makes it possible for the ship to keep doing its researching and investigation task without straying from its place by detecting the effect of wind and wave by itself even in an extreme situation.
Another noticeable feature of this vessel is it has two propellers on both sides of the back of the ship respectively unlike other ships having one propeller only. The propellers equipped in the vessel is the domestically first introduced Counter-Rotating Propeller, which has a high propulsion efficiency with spiral propellers stacked each other in a different turning direction. These enables the vessel to turn 360 degree in place or move horizontally by operating together with the propellers in the front part of the ship.
In addition, Naraho features a silent navigation with Electric Propulsion System and Anti-Rolling Tank decreasing a rolling problem.
Equipped with oceanographic observation devices such as a Multiple Echo Sounder and a Sub-bottom Profiler, the vessel enables basic research and practical training for marine physical, chemistry, geology, environment, weather, and ecology areas and practical investigation for marine resources.
"Naraho is the best vessel with the highest technology among marine research vessels that have introduced until now," and "It will be an advance guard traveling the world ocean and advancing marine science technology of Korea." said Kim Yeong Seup, president of Pukyong National University.
For more information please see: www.pknu.ac.kr.
