A closer look at a passing container ship

A container ship headed out of the river past Astoria yesterday, prompting some questions from listeners about what they were seeing. This ship is on her way now to Los Angeles, part of a typical run for container ships visiting the West Coast. We’ll talk today about container ships on the Columbia.

Note: the photo here is a picture of the MSC Vita, the ship that passed by Astoria Wednesday morning. This photo appears here courtesy of the website vesselfinder.com. Many thanks to photographer Miachael Schindler, who took this picture.

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Veering and backing: two wind terms to know

Today we’ll talk about ships, of course, but we’ll also talk about marine weather and wind – and two terms you might here in marine weather forecasts: referring to winds that are either “backing” or “veering.” Today’s unusual shifts in wind direction make it easy to explain.

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Food poisoning and crew morale

The Reuters news story about 12 crew members on a Chinese flag bulk carrier dying of apparent food poisoning last week highlights the importance of safe, heathful food on board ship. Wise captains make sure their crews are well fed for many reasons that go way beyond nutrition.

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Ships and bad weather

With Hurricane Ian wreaking havoc on the East Coast, and our own difficult weather season creeping up on us, it’s a good day to talk about bad weather and ships. It’s important to know your ship and your storm before you allow them to meet.

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At the top of the list of risky maritime professions: the Coast Guard

Yesterday we talked about risky water-based work, where people sometimes die in the course of their workday in commerical maritime professions, like marine piloting and fishing.

Today we talk about the people who go out to rescue those people when they get in trouble. That’s the Coast Guard, another whole realm of risk. They’re trained to go out in the most perilous situations and bring people back alive.

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The risks mariners take

Today, a story from Atlantic Canada, where a mariner fell from a pilot boat  this week in the course of a night’s work, and did not survive. We’ll talk about the inherent hazards in maritime jobs, and the risks those professionals take to bring us our stuff, or that delicious seafood dinner.

And speaking of risky maritime professions that also have a high profile around here… tomorrow we’ll talk about the Coast Guard.

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Our surprising yet reassuringly typical ship schedule

Today on the river, we have a cool ocean-going tugboat of many talents headed for Alaska, and a wonderfully reassuring complement of wheat-bearing ships. All proof that the world continues to spin on its axis, and we are all still here.

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A look at today’s ship schedule

Today we take another indepth look at today’s ship schedule, including how much fuel cruise ships use (we have one in town today), and the lovely meaning of the word “ubuntu,” which is part of one ship’s name on the river today.

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The autumnal equinox brings shorter days

Today we talk about the autumnal equinox, with its shorter days, which have actually been happening since June but we didn’t notice it. We’ll talk about what’s happening and what to expect between now and December, when the days start getting longer again.

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