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Displaying items by tag: Hurricane Katia

Two new videos demonstrate the different sides of kitesurfing in Ireland.
The first shows Irish kiteboarder Ryan Coote taking on the intense big surf charged by the winds of Hurricane Katia on the west coast recently.
Meanwhile the second is a more reflective illustration of the kitesurfing scene in Northern Ireland this year.
Both show that Ireland can compete with the best in the world when it comes to quality waves.
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Two new videos demonstrate the different sides of kitesurfing in Ireland.

The latter below shows Irish kiteboarder Ryan Coote taking on the intense big surf charged by the winds of Hurricane Katia on the west coast recently.

Meanwhile the former is a more reflective illustration of the kitesurfing scene in Northern Ireland this year.

Both show that Ireland can compete with the best in the world when it comes to quality waves.

Published in Kitesurfing
Daniel Murphy topped a competitive field in the All-Ireland Lake Fishing Championships, the Corkman reports.
Anglers from across the island of Ireland took part in the event on Loch Lein in Killarney, braving the high winds that heralded the arrival of Hurricane Katia.
But Macroom man Murphy - regarded as one of the top lake anglers on the circuit - was not put off by the tough conditions.
He received his award by Munster Trout Angling Council chairman Maurice Willis.

Daniel Murphy topped a competitive field in the All-Ireland Lake Fishing Championships, the Corkman reports.

Anglers from across the island of Ireland took part in the event on Loch Lein in Killarney, braving the high winds that heralded the arrival of Hurricane Katia.

But Macroom man Murphy - regarded as one of the top lake anglers on the circuit - was not put off by the tough conditions.

He received his award from Munster Trout Angling Council chairman Maurice Willis.

Published in Angling
Northern Ireland is recovering after Hurricane Katia left power cuts and travel distruption in its wake.
As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the remains of Hurrican Katia had been expected to strike hardest in the northern half of Ireland.
The Belfast Telegraph reports that Derry, Antrim and Tyrone were worst hit by winds that reached speeds of up to 120kph on Monday.
There was widespread disruption to rail and ferry services, while drivers reported hazardous conditions. The Foyle Bridge was closed to all high-sided vehiches for a time.
Some 700 homes across Northern Ireland suffered a blackout when powerlines were cut and by falling trees and windborne debris, though power was mostly restored by Tuesday evening.
Though downgraded to tropical storm status after crossing the Atlantic, Katia's high winds wreaked similar havoc south of the border, with power cuts to over 13,000 homes in six different counties - half of them in Donegal alone.
Wind gusts of an incredible 137kmh were recorded on Arranmore Island.
The Belfast Telegraph has more on the story HERE.

Northern Ireland is recovering after Hurricane Katia left power cuts and travel distruption in its wake.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the remains of Hurrican Katia had been expected to strike hardest in the northern half of Ireland.

The Belfast Telegraph reports that Derry, Antrim and Tyrone were worst hit by winds that reached speeds of up to 120kph on Monday.

There was widespread disruption to rail and ferry services, while drivers reported hazardous conditions. The Foyle Bridge was closed to all high-sided vehiches for a time.

Some 700 homes across Northern Ireland suffered a blackout when powerlines were cut and by falling trees and windborne debris, though power was mostly restored by Tuesday evening.

Though downgraded to tropical storm status after crossing the Atlantic, Katia's high winds wreaked similar havoc south of the border, with power cuts to over 13,000 homes in six different counties - half of them in Donegal alone.

Wind gusts of an incredible 137kmh were recorded on Arranmore Island.

The Belfast Telegraph has more on the story HERE.

Published in Weather
"Phenomenal" ocean conditions will be of grave concern to vessels in Irish waters from tomorrow evening as Hurricane Katia makes its approach to Ireland.
As the Irish Independent reports, Met Éireann has considered issuing a severe weater warning today, predicting winds of up to 160kmph and sea flooding on the west coast from Donegal Bay to the Shannon estuary.
On the east coast, winds are expected to reach 130kmph in Dublin on Monday, raising the threat of falling trees and "excessive damage" to property.
The UK Met Office has already taken the rare step of issuing an extreme weather alert for the whole of Ireland.
The category one hurricane is carrying winds of up to 145kmph as it crosses the Atlantic, and is expected to make landfall on the northern half of Ireland tomorrow night.
The Irish Independent has more on the story HERE.

"Phenomenal" ocean conditions will be of grave concern to vessels in Irish waters from tomorrow evening as Hurricane Katia makes its approach to Ireland.

As the Irish Independent reports, Met Éireann has considered issuing a severe weater warning today, predicting winds of up to 160kmph and sea flooding on the west coast from Donegal Bay to the Shannon estuary.

On the east coast, winds are expected to reach 130kmph in Dublin on Monday, raising the threat of falling trees and "excessive damage" to property.

The UK Met Office has already taken the rare step of issuing an extreme weather alert for the whole of Ireland.

The category one hurricane is carrying winds of up to 145kmph as it crosses the Atlantic, and is expected to make landfall on the northern half of Ireland tomorrow night.

The Irish Independent has more on the story HERE.

Published in Weather

Marine Institute Research Vessel Tom Crean

Ireland’s new marine research vessel will be named the RV Tom Crean after the renowned County Kerry seaman and explorer who undertook three major groundbreaking expeditions to the Antarctic in the early years of the 20th Century which sought to increase scientific knowledge and to explore unreached areas of the world, at that time.

Ireland's new multi-purpose marine research vessel RV Tom Crean, was delivered in July 2022 and will be used by the Marine Institute and other State agencies and universities to undertake fisheries research, oceanographic and environmental research, seabed mapping surveys; as well as maintaining and deploying weather buoys, observational infrastructure and Remotely Operated Vehicles.

The RV Tom Crean will also enable the Marine Institute to continue to lead and support high-quality scientific surveys that contribute to Ireland's position as a leader in marine science. The research vessel is a modern, multipurpose, silent vessel (designed to meet the stringent criteria of the ICES 209 noise standard for fisheries research), capable of operating in the Irish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The Tom Crean is able to go to sea for at least 21 days at a time and is designed to operate in harsh sea conditions.

RV Tom Crean Specification Overview

  • Length Overall: 52.8 m
  • Beam 14m
  • Draft 5.2M 

Power

  • Main Propulsion Motor 2000 kw
  • Bow Thruster 780 kw
  • Tunnel thruster 400 kw

Other

  • Endurance  21 Days
  • Range of 8,000 nautical miles
  • DP1 Dynamic Positioning
  • Capacity for 3 x 20ft Containers

Irish Marine Research activities

The new state-of-the-art multi-purpose marine research vessel will carry out a wide range of marine research activities, including vital fisheries, climate change-related research, seabed mapping and oceanography.

The new 52.8-metre modern research vessel, which will replace the 31-metre RV Celtic Voyager, has been commissioned with funding provided by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine approved by the Government of Ireland.

According to Aodhán FitzGerald, Research Vessel Manager of the MI, the RV Tom Crean will feature an articulated boom crane aft (6t@ 10m, 3T@ 15m), located on the aft-gantry. This will be largely used for loading science equipment and net and equipment handling offshore.

Mounted at the stern is a 10T A-frame aft which can articulate through 170 degrees which are for deploying and recovering large science equipment such as a remotely operated vehicle (ROV’s), towed sleds and for fishing operations.

In addition the fitting of an 8 Ton starboard side T Frame for deploying grabs and corers to 4000m which is the same depth applicable to when the vessel is heaving but is compensated by a CTD system consisting of a winch and frame during such operations.

The vessel will have the regulation MOB boat on a dedicated davit and the facility to carry a 6.5m Rigid Inflatable tender on the port side.

Also at the aft deck is where the 'Holland 1' Work class ROV and the University of Limericks 'Etain' sub-Atlantic ROV will be positioned. In addition up to 3 x 20’ (TEU) containers can be carried.

The newbuild has been engineered to endure increasing harsher conditions and the punishing weather systems encountered in the North-East Atlantic where deployments of RV Tom Crean on surveys spent up to 21 days duration.

In addition, RV Tom Crean will be able to operate in an ultra silent-mode, which is crucial to meet the stringent criteria of the ICES 209 noise standard for fisheries research purposes.

The classification of the newbuild as been appointed to Lloyds and below is a list of the main capabilities and duties to be tasked by RV Tom Crean:

  • Oceanographic surveys, incl. CTD water sampling
  • Fishery research operations
  • Acoustic research operations
  • Environmental research and sampling operation incl. coring
  • ROV and AUV/ASV Surveys
  • Buoy/Mooring operations