BAP ''Carrasco'' is an oceanographic research vessel of the

Peruvian Navy The Peruvian Navy (, abbreviated MGP) is the branch of the Peruvian Military of Peru, Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to from the Peruvian littoral. Additional missions include ...

built in 2016 by Freire Shipyard in

Vigo Vigo (, ; ) is a city and Municipalities in Spain, municipality in the province of province of Pontevedra, Pontevedra, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain. Located in the northwest ...

(Spain). Its purpose is to perform oceanographic research cruises both in Peruvian waters and in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

, in order to fulfill Peru's commitment under the

Antarctic Treaty The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of A ...

. The ship is endowed with technical capabilities for activities of

hydrography Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primary ...

oceanography Oceanography (), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of to ...

, marine meteorology, and marine geology. It also has polar capability and it is classified with PC7 notation. Since 2017 the ship has become the main platform for Peruvian annual expeditions to Antarctica.

Characteristics

The BAP ''Carrasco'' is long and displaces , powered by Caterpillar/General Electric diesel electric engines. The vessel can stay at sea for up to 51 days to perform its research capabilities. It has been endowed with modern equipment to conduct

hydrographic survey Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore wind farms, offshore oil exploration and drilling and related activities. Surveys may als ...

s between deep, such as hydrographic boats for shallow waters, echo sounder for biological studies, torpedo-shaped submarine vehicles AUVs Kongsberg and oceanographic rosettes for water sampling. It also has eight laboratories for hydrographic, biological, oceanography and marine geology research. The vessel is rated SILENT-A class, reducing the underwater noise and improving the quality of data collection. The vessel can also serve in logistical operations, with the capability to transport two (ft) cargo containers (

ISO The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ; ; ) is an independent, non-governmental, international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Me ...

) and it has one helicopter carrier deck and a hangar for airborne operations. According to its

Polar Class 7 Polar Class (PC) refers to the ice class assigned to a ship by a classification society based on the ''Unified Requirements for Polar Class Ships'' developed by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS). Seven Polar Class ...

ice class Ice class refers to a notation assigned by a classification society or a national authority to denote the additional level of strengthening as well as other arrangements that enable a ship to navigate through sea ice. Some ice classes also have ...

notation, the ship is able to keep its presence in Antarctica for long periods, allowing Peruvian scientists to perform more significant and long lasting researches, as well as giving a better support to Peruvian Antarctic Machu Picchu Base.

History

Construction and commissioning

The acquisition of ''Carrasco'' was conceived by the Peruvian government to improve its research activities in Peruvian

territorial waters Territorial waters are informally an area of water where a sovereign state has jurisdiction, including internal waters, the territorial sea, the contiguous zone, the exclusive economic zone, and potentially the extended continental shelf ( ...

and in

, where Peru operates the Machu Picchu Base. According to that, in 2014 the

called for an international tender to award the construction of an oceanographic vessel with polar capabilities, emerging the Spaniard shipyard Freire as the winner. The contract was signed later on December 12, 2014. On January 28, 2016, the ship was designated by Peruvian government as "BAP Carrasco (BOP-171)". It is named for Eduardo Carrasco Toro, Main Cosmographer of the

Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru (), officially known as the Kingdom of Peru (), was a Monarchy of Spain, Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in ...

. On May 7, 2016, the vessel was launched in an official ceremony attended by Peruvian president

Ollanta Humala Ollanta Moisés Humala Tasso (; born 27 June 1962) is a Peruvian politician and former military officer who served as president of Peru from 2011 to 2016. Originally a socialist and left-wing nationalist, he is considered to have shifted towar ...

, the Minister of Defense and the General Commander of the Navy. The ship was delivered by the Freire shipyard to the Peruvian Navy on March 22, 2017, in

(Spain). On the same day it was commissioned in an official flag raising ceremony held on its deck and attended by James Thornberry Schiantarelli, a high-ranked official of the Peruvian Navy, and Jose Antonio García Belaunde, Peruvian ambassador to Spain, among other authorities. The ''Carrasco'' succeeded the B.I.C. Humboldt in Peruvian expeditions to Antarctica. On May 3, 2017, the ''Carrasco'' arrived to its base in

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists ...

port and was assigned to serve on Hydrography and Navigation Agency of the Peruvian Navy in a ceremony attended by Peruvian president

Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Godard (; born 3 October 1938), also known simply as PPK (), is a Peruvian economist, public administrator, and former politician who served as the 59th President of Peru from 2016 to 2018. He served as Prime Minister of ...

. It was first deployed on 27 June 2017, participating in a 21-day mission.

Service history

Fulfilling the commitments of Peruvian Antarctic Policy as a member of the

, the ''Carrasco'' supports Peru's Antarctic research activities that were previously carried out by the B.I.C. Humboldt since 1988, strengthening the Peruvian presence in that continent. Accordingly, Peru performs annual expeditions to

(called ANTAR expeditions), sometimes in cooperation with other's countries researchers. On December 14, 2017, the ''Carrasco'' set sail into its first of this kind of mission, as part of the XXV ANTAR expedition which had a length of 90 days. During this trip the ''Carrasco'' crew performed scientific research, provided maintenance and supply to Peruvian Antarctic Machu Picchu Base and made protocolar visits to other Antarctic bases, returning to its home base in Peru on March 14, 2018. The next year the ''Carrasco'' took part in the XXVI ANTAR expedition from 7 December 2018 to 15 March 2019, in which Peruvian researchers performed several scientific programs out at Machu Picchu base and other at sea, covering areas such as glaciology, geology, atmospheric research, the study of El Niño Phenomenon, and climate change.

Gallery

File:BAP frente al Callao.jpg, In Peruvian waters (2017) File:BAP Carrasco en Base Naval del Callao.jpg, Moored in

Navy Base (2017) File:Vehículo sumergible BAP CARRASCO.jpg, One of Carrasco's lifeboats (2018) File:Puente BAP Carrasco.jpg, Carrasco's bridge of command (2018) File:BAP Carrasco (2021).jpg, Set sailing to Antarctica (2021)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carrasco Ships of the Peruvian Navy Research vessels Research vessels of Peru 2016 ships Ships built in Vigo, Spain Peru and the Antarctic