USNS Marie Tharp

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USNS Maury (T-AGS-66) pulls into Naval Station Norfolk on 2 November (2017171102-N-OH262-867).JPG
USNS Maury on 2 November 2017
History
Flag of the United States.svgUnited States
Name
  • Maury (2016–2023)
  • Marie Tharp (from 2023)
Namesake
Owner United States Navy
Operator Military Sealift Command
Awarded22 December 2009 [1]
Builder VT Halter Marine [1]
Laid down1 February 2011 [1]
Launched27 March 2013 [2]
In serviceFebruary 2016
Identification
StatusIn Service
General characteristics
Class and type Pathfinder-class survey ship
Displacement5,000 tons full 3,019 light [1]
Length353 ft (108 m) [1]
Beam58 ft (18 m) [1]
Draft19 ft (5.8 m) [1]

USNS Marie Tharp (T-AGS-66) [1] is a Pathfinder-class oceanographic survey ship operated by the Military Sealift Command of the United States Navy. The seventh ship in her class, Marie Tharp is named for oceanographer Marie Tharp; the ship was renamed in 2023 from Maury.

Contents

The-then Maury's keel was laid on 1 February 2011 in a ceremony at the VT Halter Marine shipyard in Moss Point, Mississippi. [3] The hull was launched on 27 March 2013 and the ship was delivered on 16 February 2016. [4] Maury completed her maiden voyage in June 2016. [5]

Details

Marie Tharp was the first oceanographic survey ship built since USNS Mary Sears was launched in 2000. At approximately 350 feet (110 m), Marie Tharp is 24 feet (7.3 m) longer than her other sister ships in the same class. This modification is to accommodate a 300-square-foot (28 m2) moon pool for unmanned vehicle deployment and retrieval. [3]

Name change

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 created a new Naming Commission to examine names across the US armed forces that honor the Confederate States of America, the group of states that attempted to break away from the US during the American Civil War. [6] [7]

In September 2022, the Naming Commission recommended the renaming of Maury and cruiser USS Chancellorsville, with the new names to be decided by the Secretary of the Navy. [8] Maury was named after military officer and diplomatic envoy Matthew Fontaine Maury, the "Father of Modern Oceanography" who resigned from a 36-year career in the US Navy to accept a command in the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War. [9] [10] [11]

On 8 March 2023, International Women's Day, the US Navy Secretary, Carlos Del Toro, announced the ship would be renamed in honor of oceanographer Marie Tharp, best known for helping produce the first scientific map of the Atlantic Ocean floor. [12] [13] [14] The renaming was formally completed in the Naval Vessel Register on 13 March 2023. [1]

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USNS <i>Bowditch</i> (T-AGS-21)

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USNS Michelson (T-AGS-23) was a Bowditch class oceanographic survey ship of the United States Navy. Launched as the SS Joliet Victory in 1944, Maritime Commission hull number MCV 114, a type VC2-S-AP3 Victory ship, she was named after Albert Abraham Michelson. The ship was reactivated from the James River Maritime Administration Reserve Fleet on 8 February 1958, delivered to the Navy Department at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on 8 August 1957 and converted to an AGS by the Charleston Naval Shipyard. USNS Michelson (AGS‑23) was placed in service on 15 December 1958 under the operational control of MSTS Atlantic.

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USNS <i>Sgt. George D Keathley</i> (T-APC-117)

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USNS <i>Waters</i> (T-AGS-45) United States Navy vessel

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USNS <i>John McDonnell</i> (T-AGS-51)

USNS John McDonnell (T-AGS-51) was a hydrographic survey ship operated by the Military Sealift Command (MSC) with a contract crew for the Naval Oceanographic Office which assigned a military and civilian hydrographic detachment to conduct coastal surveys. The ship and its sister, USNS Littlehales (T-AGS-52), were replacements for the coastal hydrographic survey vessels USNS Chauvenet (T-AGS-29) and USNS Harkness (T-AGS-32).

USNS <i>Kane</i> (T-AGS-27)

USNS Kane (T-AGS-27) was a Silas Bent-class survey ship acquired by the United States Navy and delivered to Military Sealift Command in 1967. Kane spent her career performing oceanographic surveys. The ship was equipped with the Oceanographic Data Acquisition System (ODAS) as were oceanographic survey ships USNS Silas Bent (T-AGS-26) and USNS Wilkes (T-AGS-33).

USNS <i>Chauvenet</i> (T-AGS-29)

USNS Chauvenet (T-AGS-29) was a multi-function survey ship laid down on 24 May 1967, at Upper Clyde Shipbuilding Corp., Glasgow, Scotland. The ship was the second survey ship, Chauvenet (AGS-11) being the first, named for William Chauvenet (1820-1870). He was instrumental in the founding of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD. The mathematics department of the US Naval Academy in Annapolis was founded by Chauvenet and is housed in Chauvenet Hall. Chauvenet was launched on 13 May 1968, delivered to the US Navy, 13 November 1970 and placed in service with the Military Sealift Command (MSC) as USNS Chauvenet (T-AGS-29). The ship conducted coastal hydrographic and topographic surveys under the technical direction of the Oceanographer of the Navy through the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO). The ship was assigned to the Pacific for surveys, sister ship Harkness (T-AGS-32) was assigned Atlantic duties, doing so until inactivated in November 1992.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "USNS Maury (T-AGS 66)". Naval Vessel Register . United States Navy. 20 February 2020. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  2. ↑ "VT Halter Marine launches T-AGS 66". MarineLog. Retrieved 1 April 2013.
  3. 1 2 Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (4 February 2011). "Keel Laid for New Navy Oceanographic Survey Ship". Navy News Service. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  4. ↑ "USNS Maury (T-AGS 66) Delivered". US Navy. 17 February 2016. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  5. ↑ "Navy's Newest Oceanographic Vessel Sets Sail". US Navy. 9 June 2016. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  6. ↑ Schmall, Emily (2023-03-11). "Stripping Confederate Ties, the U.S. Navy Renames Two Vessels". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  7. ↑ "UPDATED: Commission Recommends Renaming Two Navy Ships with Confederate Ties". USNI News. 2022-09-13. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  8. ↑ "UPDATED: Commission Recommends Renaming Two Navy Ships with Confederate Ties". USNI News . 13 September 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  9. ↑ Affairs, This story was written by Team Ships Public. "USNS Maury (T-AGS 66) Delivered". www.navy.mil. Retrieved 2016-06-15.
  10. ↑ "Matthew Fontaine Maury Biography". xroads.virginia.edu. Retrieved 2016-06-15.
  11. ↑ Myers, Meghann (2021-09-07). "Here's your chance to help rename Army posts and Navy ships honoring the Confederacy". Military Times. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  12. ↑ SECNAV Renames Pathfinder-class Oceanographic Survey Ship USNS Maury after Marie Tharp, Media Release, Secretary of the Navy, 2023-03-08
  13. ↑ Navy Renames Survey Ship After Pioneering Female Ocean Researcher, Stripping Vessel of Confederate Ties, Konstantin Toropin, Military.com, 2023-03-08
  14. ↑ O'Connell, Suzanne (August 8, 2020). "Marie Tharp's maps revolutionized our knowledge of the seafloor". The Washington Post.
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