The Ocean Nova is a cruise ship for use in arctic waters. The ship with an ice-safe hull was built in 1992 and used under the name Sarpik Ittuk in the drift-ice waters around Greenland . From 2006 to 2011 the ship was part of the Quark Expeditions fleet and was stationed in the Weddell Sea . In 2011, the Swedish operator Polar Quest signed a multi-year charter for the ship for the first time in order to use it in the Arctic. The max. There is space for 68 passengers in 37 outside cabins with sanitary facilities. The Ocean Nova is registered in the Bahamas .
During a cruise in the Southern Ocean that ran Ocean Nova on 17 February 2009 04:30 UTC in position 68 ° 8 ' S , 67 ° 6' W due. After two attempts to get the ship free from the rock during high tide , it was decided to evacuate the passengers. In heavy seas, temperatures around freezing point and wind forces of up to ten Bft , 68 people were brought onto the Clipper Adventurer in rubber dinghies . An inspection of the hull at the scene of the accident by divers did not reveal any damage. On February 18, 2009, the ship was released on its own. This ship accident rekindled the discussion about the justifiability and risk of tourist events in the polar regions, although the ocean nova grounding went off lightly, in contrast to other collisions of cruise ships, e.g. B. in the accident of the Explorer in November 2007.
-68.133333333333 -67.1
