RV FLIP

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Career (US)
Name: FLIP
Owner: Office of Naval Research
Operator: Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Builder: Gunderson Brothers Engineering
Completed: 1962
Identification: Call sign: WI7115
MMSI no.: 338040561
Status: Operational
Notes: [1]
General characteristics
Tonnage: 700 GRT
Length: 108 m (354 ft)
Beam: 7.93 m (26.0 ft)
Draught: 3.83 m (12.6 ft) (towed)
100 m (330 ft) (deployed)
Speed: 7-10 knots (towed)
Capacity: Fresh water 5.7 m3 (200 cu ft)
Water generation 2.7 m3 (95 cu ft)/per day
Crew: 5 crew
11 researchers
Notes: [1]

RV FLIP (FL oating I nstrument P latform) is an open ocean research vessel owned by the US Office of Naval Research and operated by the Marine Physical Laboratory of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.[2] The ship is a 355 feet (108 meters) long vessel designed to partially flood and pitch backward 90°, resulting in only the front 55 feet (17 meters) of the vessel pointing up out of the water, with bulkheads becoming decks. When flipped, most of the buoyancy for the platform is provided by water at depths below the influence of surface waves, hence FLIP is a stable platform mostly immune to wave action, like a spar buoy. At the end of a mission, compressed air is pumped into the ballast tanks in the flooded section and the vessel returns to its horizontal position so it can be towed to a new location.[3] The ship is frequently mistaken for a capsized ocean transport ship.[4]

History

The Marine Physical Laboratory (MPL) of Scripps Institution of Oceanography created FLIP with funding from the Office of Naval Research (TRF) and the assistance of the commercial naval architect, The Glosten Associates.[5] The Gunderson Brothers Engineering Company in Portland, Oregon launched FLIP in June 1962. In 1995, FLIP received a US$2 million modernization.[1]

Capabilities

FLIP is designed to study wave height, acoustic signals, water temperature and density, and for the collection of meteorological data. Because of the potential interference with the acoustic instruments, FLIP has no engines or other means of propulsion. It must be towed to open water, where it drifts freely or is anchored. In tow, FLIP can reach speeds of 7–10 knots.[1]

FLIP weighs 700 long tons (711 tonnes) and carries a crew of five, plus up to eleven scientists. It is capable of operating independently during month-long missions without resupply.[6] It can be operated around the world, although the normal area is off the west coast of the United States. The ship has specially designed interiors. Some fixtures, such as the toilet seats, can flip 90°. The lights are on the ceiling and also on a wall that becomes the ceiling after the flip. Also, the shower heads are curved 90°. The vessel operates out of a home base at the Scripps Nimitz Marine Facility in San Diego, California.[6]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "FLIP - Research Vessel". Ship-Technology.com. 2009. Retrieved 21 August 2010. 
  2. ↑ Office of Naval Research (11 September 2008). "Research Vessels: Surface Vessels - R/V FLIP". United States Navy. Retrieved 21 August 2010. 
  3. ↑ "All About F.L.I.P.". Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. 15 January 2004. Retrieved 21 August 2010. 
  4. ↑ Fred Fisher (2002). FLIP - The World's Strangest Research Lab (video). Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Retrieved 21 August 2010. 
  5. ↑ "MPL - Resources - FLIP - History". Retrieved 13 August 2012. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Military Sealift Command (October 2003). "Sealift -- FLIP ship gets a lift from USNS Navajo". United States Navy. Retrieved 21 August 2010. 

External links

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