Research led by the University is one of the first missions for Boaty McBoatface, a new state-of-the-art robot submarine, based at Southampton’s National Oceanography Centre (NOC).
Boaty McBoatface was named by Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation, alongside the keel-laying ceremony of the UK’s new state-of-the-art polar research ship, RRS Sir David Attenborough, at Cammell Laird’s shipyard in Birkenhead.
The hugely popular name was proposed as part of the ‘Name our Ship’ campaign, in which members of the public were able to make suggestions
Boaty McBoatface and RRS Sir David Attenborough’s missions are set to be the focal point of a new £1m Government-funded ‘Polar Explorer Programme’, that aims to inspire the next generation of scientists, engineers and citizens by engaging young people with the RRS Sir David Attenborough and polar science.
Boaty McBoatface has been developed at the NOC and is able to travel thousands of kilometres on missions lasting several months at a time. The ability to travel under ice and reach depths of 6000 metres will enable Boaty to explore 95 per cent of the ocean.
Commissioned by NERC (Natural Environment Research Council), operated by British Antarctic Survey (BAS), and built by Cammell Laird, the RRS Sir David Attenborough will transform UK polar research capability.
Professor Ed Hill, the Executive Director of the NOC, said:
“We are really happy to be the home of Boaty McBoatface, which we hope will be a great vehicle for communicating to a new audience the impact of our science, as well as the innovation that allows it to happen.”
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