The RRS Sir David Attenborough is the British Antarctic Survey's flagship ship and will soon be heading down to the polar region to start scientific research. But first, it must go through rigorous testing. New Scientist's Alec Luhn joins the UK’s new state-of-the-art polar research ship for trials in the North Sea ahead of its first scientific expedition to Antarctica.
The Attenborough is 129 metres long, weighs 15,000 tonnes and can break through ice more than 2 metres thick. With 12 decks, 13 laboratories and even an experimental aquarium, it has as much space for research as the entire BAS headquarters in Cambridge.
Its greatest strength, however, isn’t its size, but its complexity. Scientists helped design the £200 million vessel’s state-of-the-art operational systems and research equipment, and the next few months will test not only whether all that equipment works, but also whether the crew of 30 knows how to use it.
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