RRS ''Discovery II'' was a British Royal Research Ship which, during her operational lifetime of about 30 years, carried out considerable

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

and marine biological survey work in

Antarctic The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antar ...

waters and the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the world ocean, generally taken to be south of 60th parallel south, 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is the seco ...

in the course of the

Discovery Investigations The Discovery Investigations were a series of scientific cruises and shore-based investigations into the biology of whales in the Southern Ocean. They were funded by the British Colonial Office and organised by the Discovery Committee in London, ...

research program. Built in

Port Glasgow Port Glasgow (, ) is the second-largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19,426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16,617 persons. The most recent census in 2011 s ...

, launched in 1928 and completed in 1929, she was the first purpose-built

oceanographic 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 top ...

research vessel and was named after

Robert Falcon Scott Captain Robert Falcon Scott (6 June 1868 – ) was a British Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, ''Discovery'' expedition of 1901–04 and the Terra Nova Expedition ...

's 1901 ship, RRS ''Discovery''.

Career

The ship's maiden voyage took place from December 1929 to May 1931 and consisted of a hydrographic survey of the

South Sandwich Islands The South Sandwich Islands () are a chain of uninhabited volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. They are administered as part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The chain lies in the sub-A ...

. From October 1932 until May 1933 she operated in the Antarctic, calling at South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Similar voyages took place from 1934 to 1939 during which she supplied the British Graham Land expedition. Her last voyage before the onset of war was from September 1937 to May 1939. In December 1935 and January 1936, the ship was involved in a successful rescue of American polar explorer and

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

Lincoln Ellsworth Lincoln Ellsworth (May 12, 1880 – May 26, 1951) was an American polar explorer, engineer, surveyor, and author. He led the first Arctic and Antarctic air crossings. Early life Linn Ellsworth was born in Chicago, Illinois on May 12, 1880. His ...

and his English copilot Herbert Hollick-Kenyon after their aircraft ditched in the

Ross Sea The Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, between Victoria Land and Marie Byrd Land and within the Ross Embayment, and is the southernmost sea on Earth. It derives its name from the British explorer James Clark Ross who ...

near the

Bay of Whales The Bay of Whales was a natural ice harbour, or iceport, indenting the front of the Ross Ice Shelf just north of Roosevelt Island, Antarctica, at the southernmost point of the world's ocean. While the Ross Sea stretches considerably further s ...

. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

she served with the

Royal Fleet Auxiliary The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is a naval auxiliary fleet owned by the UK's Ministry of Defence. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service and provides logistical and operational support to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. The RF ...

, mainly in the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...

, before resuming her Antarctic survey work after the war ended. Her final Antarctic voyage in the Discovery Investigations series took place from May 1950 to December 1951, in the course of which she circumnavigated the Antarctic continent and discovered four

seamount A seamount is a large submarine landform that rises from the ocean floor without reaching the water surface (sea level), and thus is not an island, islet, or cliff-rock. Seamounts are typically formed from extinct volcanoes that rise abruptly a ...

s, three in the Indian Ocean and one in the Pacific Ocean. From 1952 she mainly undertook oceanographical work in the North Atlantic. She was decommissioned in 1962 and broken up the following year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Discovery II Research vessels of the United Kingdom 1928 ships Ships built on the River Clyde Exploration of Antarctica History of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands