Nella Dan
The Nella Dan was a ship deployed in the Antarctic that entered service in 1962 after being built in 1961 and sank off Macquarie Island in 1987 . She sailed in Antarctic waters for 25 years, making her the “longest-serving” Antarctic ship to this day.
Construction and technical data
The Nella Dan was manufactured by the Danish shipping company Lauritzen and had special icebreaker accessories : an icebreaker stem , intermediate frames and intermediate stringers , a reinforced outer skin and a double hull made of steel that could withstand temperatures of down to -50 ° C. Although it was not an icebreaker, at full power it could cross ice a meter thick, reaching five to six knots .
The ship was 75.149 meters long and 14.3 meters wide, with a draft of 7.32 meters. It was 2206.41 GRT . The engine was an 8-cylinder Burmeister & Wains diesel engine that reached 2530 hp and could achieve a speed of 13 knots on the open sea with a full load.
fate
The Nella Dan was almost always rented from its first use in 1962 to the Australian government, which they as a supply ship in the Antarctic was used. From Macquarie Island she headed for various Australian research stations with food and materials.
From 1979 it was used in deep-sea research after it had been equipped with a helicopter deck , an amphibious vehicle and laboratory and computer rooms. It could now hold up to 42 passengers.
On December 3, 1987, a storm tore the ship lying on a supply voyage off Macquarie Island from its anchorage, which ran aground a few meters off the island's coast. Too badly damaged to repair, it was dragged into 200 meters of water, where it caught fire and sank on December 24th.
Honors
In the Antarctic, the Nella Fjord , Nella Island and Nella Rock are named after the ship.