SALMASTER
Shipbuildervessel built by
Hall, Russell & Company, Limited
(Aberdeen, Scotland, 1864 - 1992)
Date12 November 1985
Object NameHEAVY LIFT VESSEL
MediumSTEEL
ClassificationsShip
Dimensionslength (overall) 72.55 x breadth 14.89 x depth 4.470
gross tonnage 1967 tons
gross tonnage 1967 tons
Object numberABDSHIP002682
Keywords
Yard Number: 994
Official Number: 904335
Renamed: OCEAN ENDEAVOUR (2002)
Propulsion: Motor
Description: Sal class salvage vessel, 2 decks, welded construction
Owners:
1985: Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service, pennant no. A186.
2001: Gardline Marine Sciences, Lowestoft, UK, as a survey vessel.
General History:
SALMASTER was one of three salvage vessels built for the Admiralty by Hall Russell. The other two were SALMOOR and SALMAID, which have also been sold to private companies. They were fitted with a heavy lift jib on the fore deck with a post on the starboard and portside of the wheelhouse front, which were fitted with heavy lift sheaves to take the wires from the jib. On the bow there was a horn port and starboard that protrude over the bow to lift buoys or heavy anchors. At the bow, port and starboard, a section of oak timber was fitted to protect the hull when the crane was lifting heavy loads. As they were fitted at the bow each one had to be shaped to match the contour shape of the hull, and were set at an angle from the deck to the waterline.
Reconfigured as a survey vessel in 2004 with substantial technical capabilities, among them side- and bottom-scanning sonar, grab and water samplers, seismic air guns and associated compressors.
OCEAN ENDEAVOUR was hardly spacious, but she was not cramped. A comfortable lounge and a well-stocked library would help while away off-duty hours.
Seismic exploration was no smooth, silent operation but, by necessity, a noisy and physically complicated one. Compressed air is released as regular sudden blasts from a suspended, towed 'gun' device below the ocean surface. Hydrophones towed well aft of the ship sense and transmit the echoes from the sea floor and the layers beneath. These air blasts were released at regular intervals, typically between 15 and 20 seconds. As OCEAN ENDEAVOUR settled into the work at the required five-knot speed, the air guns started to operate.
D. Nance, 'A Seismic Shift: Ocean Endeavour', The Log: Quarterly journal of the Nautical Association of Australia, vol. 57, no. 1, issue 235 (2024): pp. 20-5.
Notes:
2 oil engines with clutch flex coupling and DR gear CP props, total power 2,984KW (4056HP) Ruston 2 x Vee 4 stroke 8cy, 254x305 each Ruston Diesels. 1 bow thruster fuel 242.0 (D.O.),
15 February 1858
April 1827
