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Displaying items by tag: World Aids Nav Day

Transportation by sea is the most important means of connecting Ireland to international markets, according to one of Ireland’s leading maritime authorities.

Speaking on IALA World Aids to Navigation Day (AtoN) on Wednesday, July 1, the CEO of Irish Lights, the organisation responsible for delivering maritime safety services on an all-island basis, highlighted that maritime transport accounts for more than 90% of Ireland’s international trade, in volume terms.

(Afloat adds that IALA is an organisation of the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities). 

“Food, fuel, medical supplies and other essential goods are transported by sea, and as an island nation, Ireland’s dependence on open, safe maritime channels cannot be overstated. This was particularly evident through the recent Covid-19 pandemic,” said Yvonne Shields O'Connor.

Irish Lights, the organisation responsible for safe navigation at sea, uses its network of lighthouses, beacons, buoys and virtual and electronic Aids to Navigation to ensure safe passage. Both onshore and at sea, Aids to navigation, also known as AtoN, are critical to navigation and enhance safety and provide security to marine users, from large vessels transporting essential goods, to fishing and leisure users and more.

“Our seafood industry contributes €1.22 billion to Irish GDP and is a vital part of our coastal economy. Aids to Navigation are critical to the safe operation of over 2,300 fishing vessels registered in Ireland and Northern Ireland and many more foreign vessels working in our waters.The leisure fleet returning to the water following the Covid-19 restrictions is heavily dependent on the Aids to Navigation provided by Irish Lights and by Local Lighthouse Authorities such as County Councils, Ports and Harbours,” said Ms Shields O’Connor.

Aids to Navigation today are a technologically advanced mix of visual aids such as lighthouses, buoys, and beacons; and electronic aids such as Radar Beacons (Racon), Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) and Differential GPS (DGPS). The use of solar, battery and LED technology is facilitating improved services to the mariner and the use of renewable energy for our AtoN systems.

Keeping maritime channels operating effectively will continue to be ever more important as economic activity increases and as tourism and leisure intensifies over the summer.

A great summer activity to consider is a visit to one of Irish Lights lighthouses, all of which are functioning Aids to Navigation.

There are 14 Lighthouses accessible to the public through the Great Lighthouses of Ireland partnership www.greatlighthouses.com Irish Lights works hard to ensure that these sites, together with our modern buoys, beacons and radio AtoN, will continue to provide a range of technologically relevant services to all mariners.

Published in Lighthouses

The Star keelboat is a 6.9 metres (23 ft) one-design racing keelboat for two people designed by Francis Sweisguth in 1910.

The Star was an Olympic keelboat class from 1932 through to 2012, the last year keelboats appeared at the Summer Olympics at which Ireland's representatives were Peter O'Leary and David Burrows.

Ireland has performed well in the class internationally thanks to some Olympic campaigns including a bronze medal at the Star World Championships in 2000, won by Mark Mansfield and David O'Brien.

The boat is sloop-rigged, with a mainsail larger in proportional size than any other boat of its length. Unlike most modern racing boats, it does not use a spinnaker when sailing downwind. Instead, when running downwind a whisker pole is used to hold the jib out to windward for correct wind flow.

Early Stars were built from wood, but modern boats are of fibreglass and carbon construction.

The boat must weigh at least 671 kg (1,479 lb) with a maximum total sail area of 26.5 m2 (285 sq ft).

The Star class pioneered an unusual circular boom vang track, which allows the vang to effectively hold the boom down even when the boom is turned far outboard on a downwind run.

Another notable aspect of Star sailing is the extreme hiking position adopted by the crew and at times the helmsman, who normally use a harness to help hang low off the windward side of the boat with only their lower legs inside.

At A Glance – Star Specifications

Designer Francis Sweisguth
Year 1910
Crew 2 (Skipper + Crew)
S + 1.5 C ≤ 250 kg (550 lb)[1]
Draft 1.016 m (3 ft 4 in)
Hull Type keelboat
Hull weight ≥ 671 kg (1,479 lb)
(including keel)
LOA 6.922 m (22 ft 9 in)
LWL 4.724 m (15 ft 6 in)
Beam 1.734 m (5 ft 8 in) at deck
1.372 m (4 ft 6 in) at chine
Hull appendages
Keel/board type bulb keel
401.5 ± 7 kg (885 ± 15 lb)
Rig
Rig type sloop
Mast length 9.652 m (31 ft 8 in)
Sails
Mainsail area 20.5 m2 (221 sq ft)
Jib/genoa area  6.0 m2 (65 sq ft)
Upwind sail area ≤ 26.5 m2 (285 sq ft)

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