MS ''Polarfront'' was a Norwegian weather ship located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It was the last remaining weather ship in the world, maintained by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute. A weather ship is a

ship A ship is a large watercraft, vessel that travels the world's oceans and other Waterway, navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally disti ...

stationed in mid-

ocean The ocean is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of Earth. The ocean is conventionally divided into large bodies of water, which are also referred to as ''oceans'' (the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Indian, Southern Ocean ...

to make meteorological observations for

weather forecasting Weather forecasting or weather prediction is the application of science and technology forecasting, to predict the conditions of the Earth's atmosphere, atmosphere for a given location and time. People have attempted to predict the weather info ...

. Since the 1960s this role has been largely superseded by

satellite A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scient ...

s, long-range

aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...

and weather buoys. MS ''Polarfront'' was known as weather station M ("Mike"), and was located at 66°N, 02°E. Standard meteorological observations were performed on an hourly basis from the beginning of the 1960s. On 27 February 2009, the cancellation of the station was announced.Siste reis for værskipet - yr.no (Norwegian)
/ref> MS ''Polarfront'' was removed from service on 1 January 2010. Polarfront-in-Adventfjorden

Since 28 June 2017, MS ''Polarfront'' has been owned and operated by the French shipping company Latitude Blanche for expedition purposes in high latitudes.

History of station M

The

International Civil Aviation Organization The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sch ...

(ICAO) took the responsibility to operate an international network of ocean weather stations in the north Atlantic. The network was established in 1948 and consisted of 13 stations, including station M. The need for weather ships from civil aviation decreased gradually while meteorological societies still needed observations from the oceans. In 1974 the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) took responsibility for the four remaining stations. The international agreement about weather ships was ended in 1990. The

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

continued the operation of one station each, station L ("Lima"), west of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, and station M, in the Norwegian Sea. Station L was ended in the middle of the 1990s. Thus station M was the only one still remaining. The first two weather ships to man station M were ''Polarfront I'' and ''Polarfront II''. The Norwegian authorities were the ship owners. The ships were rebuilt

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

corvettes ( and ). They served until 1974 and 1976, respectively. In 1974 the Norwegian state made an agreement with the shipping company Misje Offshore Marine AS in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

to hire a new and modern ship, which was given the name ''Polarfront''. For several years the ship alternated with the Dutch weather ship ''Cumulus'' to staff station M. From 1986 on ''Polarfront'' staffed station M alone. Each month ''Polarfront'' left the station for one to two days to take on a new crew and new supplies. Once a year, usually in early October, the ship stayed in its home port for a week to carry out maintenance.

References

External links

yr.no: Observations and forecasts from Polarfront (station Mike)

Latitude Blanche

POLARFRONT (Exhibition Ship) Registered in France - Vessel details, Current position and Voyage information - IMO 7608708, MMSI 228092600, Call Sign FJYK , AIS Marine Traffic
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polarfront 1976 ships Meteorological data and networks Oceanographic instrumentation Ships of Norway Weather ships Ships built in Mandal, Norway