RV ''Borys Aleksandrov'' is a Ukrainian research vessel which was built in 1984. She was previously crewed by the
Belgian Naval Component as RV ''Belgica'' and is in active service.
Description
''Borys Aleksandrov'' is long, with a beam of and a draught of .
[ Assessed at , ,]diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...
, driving a kort nozzle ducted propeller.[ She has a bow and stern thruster and an ]electric motor
An electric motor is a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a electromagnetic coil, wire winding to gene ...
.[
''Borys Aleksandrov'' has a range of at . Her maximum speed is .][ She is fitted with a ]Kongsberg
Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production and fo ...
EM 1002 and EM 3002 sonar
Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...
and an acoustic doppler current profiler. There are five laboratories on board. Power is provided by two diesel powered generators of each.[
]
History
''Belgica'' was built by Boelwerf, Temse
Temse (; ) is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in East Flanders, Belgium.
The name Temse is derived from the Gallo-Roman/Gaul Tamisiacum or Tamasiacum. This is also reflected in the French name for the town, Tamise. The main sights in ...
. She was launched on 6 January 1984 and commissioned on 5 July 1984.Zeebrugge
Zeebrugge (; from , meaning "Bruges-on-Sea"; , ) is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the international port of Bruges-Zeebrugge and a seafront resort with ...
. She was allocated the IMO Number
The IMO number of the International Maritime Organization is a generic term with two distinct applications:
* the IMO ship identification number is a unique ship identifier; or,
* the IMO company and registered owner identification number is u ...
8222563, MMSI Number 205218000 and pennant number
In the Royal Navy and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth of Nations, ships are identified by pennant number (an internationalisation of ''pendant number'', which it was called before 1948). Historically, naval ships flew a flag that iden ...
A962. ''Belgica'' used the callsign ORGQ.Adrien de Gerlache
Baron Adrien Victor Joseph de Gerlache de Gomery (; 2 August 1866 – 4 December 1934) was a Belgian officer in the Belgian Royal Navy who led the Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897–99.
Early years
Born in Hasselt in eastern Belgium as t ...
in the Belgian Antarctic Expedition
The Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897–1899 was the first expedition to winter in the Antarctic region. Led by Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery aboard the RV ''Belgica'', it was the first Belgian Antarctic expedition and is considered the fir ...
(1897–99).
''Belgica'' was operated by the Management Unit of North Sea Mathematical Models (MUMM) and crewed by the Belgian Naval Component.
References
External links
Current position of ''Belgica''
Complete details of ''Belgica''
(in Dutch)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borys Aleksandrov
1984 ships
Ships built in Belgium
Research vessels of Belgium
Auxiliary ships of the Belgian Navy
Research vessels of Ukraine