Princess on the Tyne: Introducing the RV The Princess Royal

21 November 2012 Newcastle Evening Meeting 

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Overview

Local Inspiration  – The Design, Manufacture and Operation of RV The Princess Royal
Professor Mehmet Atlar, School of Marine Science and Technology, Newcastle University In September
2011, the new Newcastle University research vessel was named at a ceremony conducted by HRH The Princess Royal on the Newcastle Quayside. Drawing inspiration from the distinctive Northumbrian Coble, RV The Princess Royal, has been designed in‐house by staff and students in the School of Marine Science and Technology. In this talk, Professor Mehmet Atlar, the leader of the project, described the concept design and testing of the hull forms, the manufacture of the vessel by Alnmarintec in Blyth and the facilities available for research and teaching on board, particularly those of relevance to the subsea industry.

The second talk of the evening was presented by Ilaria Spiga, a PhD student who is conducting research using the RV The Princess Royal.

Understanding the Scale and Impacts of Anthropogenic Noise upon Fish and Invertebrates in the Marine Environment
Ilaria Spiga, PhD student, School of Marine Science and Technology, Newcastle University
Sound generated by human activity is an important component of the total ocean acoustic background. Shipping, offshore construction, dredging, seismic surveying for gas and oil and recreational activities are leading to higher levels of ambient noise and there is concern regarding the effect of this noise on fish and crustaceans inhabiting the UK’s marine environment. In this talk, Ilaria presented her research, being conducted as part of the SoundWaves consortium, into the characterization of the signature of anthropogenic acoustic signals and the experimental evidence being collected on the effects on the behavioral responses of fish to controlled noise exposure.