Navigation News

Anschütz has designed an integrated Autonomous Navigation and Command System for naval vessels. Using proven, readily available and type-approved components, it provides navies with enhanced safety and sustainable capability for unmanned systems, all the while retaining full technological sovereignty.Scalable from assistance systems to highly automated solutions, and from the monitoring and control of unmanned surface vessels (USVs) to automation solutions for large combatants…

Terma A/S, a leader in surveillance radar technology, has partnered with Sperry Marine, a manufacturer and service provider of marine navigation systems, to deliver the SCANTER 4603 and SCANTER 6002 series of naval surveillance radar to Seaspan Shipyards for the upcoming Canadian Coast Guard’s Multi-Purpose Icebreaker and Polar Icebreaker Programs.This milestone underscores the ongoing partnership between Sperry Marine and Terma A/S and the two companies’ commitment to empowering the Canadian Coast Guard with radar technology designed for precision situational awareness…

The S-100 framework is a new global standard created by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), in collaboration with other hydrographic offices around the world, that enables the integration of diverse datasets within a single Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS).Mariners will be able to combine various data layers with Electronic Navigational Charts including detailed depth information and dynamic information on tides and currents.S-100 builds on the digital foundation of S-57, the standard for electronic navigational charts since 1992.

A towing vessel grounded on a submerged jetty last year after the captain maneuvered too close to a bank of the Ohio River, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded in its analysis of the incident.The towing vessel Tom Frazier was pushing 15 empty hopper barges near Portsmouth, Ohio, on Feb. 10, 2024, when the vessel grounded, damaging the vessel’s hull plating, framing and bulkheads and flooding several spaces. The nine-person crew was safely evacuated to shore. An estimated five gallons of oil were released and the vessel sustained damage estimated at more than $250…

At a time when GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) reception face growing threats from jamming and spoofing, having a navigation system that doesn’t solely rely on satellite signals has become vital for critical maritime operations. With real-world disruptions increasingly affecting shipping and aviation safety, Kongsberg Discovery’s MGCs (Motion Gyro Compasses) deliver reliability, accuracy and resilience in contested environments. Jamming disrupts GNSS signals, limiting access to satellite-based positioning.

A pilot of a towing vessel on the Mississippi River left the helm unattended for several minutes, leading to a grounding near Thebes, Illinois, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has concluded.While the towing vessel City of Louisville was upbound on the Mississippi River pushing 11 barges on July 29, 2023, it ran aground in a charted shallow and rocky area. The grounding caused fractures to the vessel’s bottom plating underneath the engine room, leading to water flooding into the engine room, machinery and aft accommodation spaces.

A steering system failure led to a bulk carrier’s contact with a navigational aid in the St. Marys River near Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.The bulk carrier American Mariner struck the Munuscong Channel Junction Light on March 28, 2024, as it was transiting upbound in the St. Marys River. The Munuscong Channel Junction Light is comprised of a navigational light and signal mounted on a concrete, fixed structure.After the contact the vessel began taking on water but was stabilized using pumps.

Scientists at the UK’s National Oceanography Centre (NOC) in Liverpool have used satellite data to create insight into the Mersey River that will help port operators be smarter about managing complex navigation channels. Through a project focused on Liverpool’s famous river and funded by the UK Space Agency, NOC’s scientists showed that changes in areas exposed at low tide can be mapped from space.The project, run in partnership with the Channel Coastal Observatory (CCO) and Peel Ports Group…

The same error-prone sensitivity that has slowed down the development of quantum computers is being turned into an advantage for GPS-denied navigation.A new quantum sensing technology from Australia-based Q-CTRL has most recently caught the interest of Lockheed Martin and the US Defense Innovation Unit, but the company is already working with the Australian Department of Defence, the UK Royal Navy, the US Department of Defense and Airbus.These agencies are interested in a quantum-sensing-based navigation system…

HD Hyundai and A.P. Moller - Maersk have signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a collaboration on decarbonization solutions for vessels, while HD Hyundai plans to expand the use of Maersk’s integrated logistics services across its affiliates.Since 2021, HD Hyundai has received orders for a total of 19 methanol-powered container ships from Maersk. Last year, the company successfully delivered the world’s first methanol-powered ultra-large container ship, continuing its collaboration with Maersk in the field of decarbonization of shipbuilding and shipping industry.Initially…

PALFINGER MARINE will deliver eight Stiff Boom Cranes PS 15500M for four inland navigation vessels to the Brazilian shipyard Estaleiro Rio Maguari (ERM). This contributes to the optimization of inland navigation in Latin America (LATAM) along the Paraguay-Paraná waterway. The cooperation between PALFINGER MARINE and ERM is part of a large-scale inland waterway transport project led by LHG Logística, the logistics arm of the Brazilian mining company LHG Mining. The project includes the construction of 400 barges and 15 pusher boats to support iron ore transport.In the future…

The Titanic sunk 113 years ago on April 14-15 after hitting an iceberg, with human error likely causing the ship to stray into dangerous waters. Today, autonomous systems built on artificial intelligence (AI) could help ships avoid such accidents, but could such a system explain to the captain why it was maneuvering a certain way?That’s the idea behind explainable AI which should help human actors trust autonomous systems more.Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate…

French high-tech industrial group Exail Technologies on Wednesday reported a 519% rise in its order intake in the first quarter of the year, driven by higher defence spending by European governments.The maker of underwater drones and navigation equipment said its order intake for the first quarter totalled 487 million euros ($554.30 million), boosted by a new contract for drone systems worth several hundred million euros.The company did not give further details on the deal, announced in February, when it said it was placed by a "leading Navy".Exail is the latest small defence tech supplier propelled by prospects of a military ramp-up in Europe as the region increases its defence budgets…

A tank vessel struck a pier at Joint Base Charleston’s Naval Weapons Station in South Carolina after a pilot allowed the vessel to get too close to a riverbank, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Wednesday.The 604-foot-long tanker Hafnia Amessi struck Naval Weapons Station Pier B while transiting the Cooper River on January 14, 2024. A Charleston Branch Pilots Association pilot was navigating the vessel, which sustained damage to its side hull plating. The contact resulted in $8.1 million in damages to the vessel and pier.

An agreement on freedom of navigation in the Black Sea to ensure the protection of civilian vessels and port infrastructure "will be a crucial contribution to global food security and supply chains," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday.The United States announced separate agreements with Ukraine and Russia on Tuesday to pause their strikes in the Black Sea and against each other's energy targets, but the rhetoric from Moscow and Kyiv suggested they remained far apart.The United Nations has been working consistently on the issue, Dujarric said, especially since U.N.

Orca AI celebrated a milestone as Seaspan Corporation, a global containership powerhouse, integrates its SeaPod digital watchkeeper across its entire fleet to support safety improvements and operational cost savings.As part of its digitalization strategy, Seaspan began using Orca AI's SeaPod digital watchkeeper on select vessels to enhance situational awareness for navigation. An analysis of Seaspan’s fleet performance from 2023−2024 revealed positive results: a 35% increase in the minimum average distance between vessels in open waters and a 37% decrease in close encounters.By using Orca AI…

German navigation specialist Anschütz has developed a navigation and command system for autonomous and unmanned maritime operations. The approval-ready system has undergone extensive testing in autonomous operation and is currently being prepared for use in prototypes, according to the company.The autonomous navigation and command system from Anschütz provides navies with a sustainable capability and safety enhancement for unmanned systems. It ensures autonomous navigation and control and operation of unmanned platforms…

The Pilots' Association of the Bay and River Delaware has welcomed Pennsylvania, the latest pilot boat built by Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding. The Chesapeake Class launch is equipped with a full suite of Furuno marine electronics, installed by Cay Electronics of Rhode Island.At the heart of the navigation system are dual NavNet TZtouch3 TZT9F Multi Function Displays (MFDs). Delivering chart plotting and Radar overlay, these 9” MFDs integrate navigation and communication systems.

It’s late in the season so Captain Duke Snider, sailing on a resupply voyage from New Zealand to Antarctica, is expecting virtually no sea, just glacial ice.Snider has been an ice navigator for decades, and he has seen the ocean change, not just here in the polar south, but in Arctic waters as well.“Variability is much greater than in the past when we could expect an ice breakup to occur within a calendar week, year after year, whether it was the Arctic or the Antarctic,” he says.

An anchor chain failure, followed by a navigation failure, led to the grounding of the cargo vessel Bonnie G in the Caribbean Sea, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has concluded.On October 4, 2023, the Bonnie G was anchored, waiting out poor weather about 1 mile south of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, when its anchor chain parted and the vessel began to drift toward land.As the captain attempted to navigate the vessel away from shore, the vessel grounded.The 12 people on board abandoned the vessel and were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard.

FLIR announced its next generation of marine thermal monoculars – the FLIR Ocean Scout Pro. Designed for public safety professionals and to provide enhanced situational awareness for professional and recreational mariners, the Ocean Scout Pro is deisgned to be intuitive, easy to use, and available at a price point, making it an accessible and beneficial addition to any mariner’s safety equipment kit.Designed around an advanced 640 x 480 thermal detector, the Ocean Scout Pro's intuitive design provides an extended 500-meter detection range and a 32-degree field of view lens.

Professor Kjetil Nordby, head of Ocean Industries Concept Lab at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design, has announced the launch of the latest version of the open source OpenBridge design framework, built to deliver consistent, modern and regulation-compliant user experiences for maritime bridges and other safety-critical applications.‍Ship bridges are made up of systems from many suppliers that deliver individual implementations to each bridge. This leads to fragmented workplaces with a large number of different user interfaces…

International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) member states have adopted the first set of operational standards within the S-100 framework.The S-100 framework enables the integration of diverse datasets within a single Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS). Mariners will now be able to combine various data layers such as Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs), detailed depth information and dynamic information on water level and currents to enhance situational…