RV Thalassa

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Infrastructure Profile

Infrastructure Provider

Location/Home Port

Brest, France

Organisation & Address

IFREMER / French Oceanographic Fleet / 1625 route de Sainte-Anne – CS 10070 – 29280 Plouzané, FRANCE

Infrastructure Webpage

Visit website

Virtual vessel visit

Link to Vessel/Infrastructure Schedules (if applicable)

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Normal Area of Operation

RV Thalassa operates mostly in the North-East Atlantic (42°N-60°N; 25°W-2°E) but occasionally, she may also work in the Mediterranean Sea (37°N-44°N; 0°E-15°E)

Maximum Number of Days Available

15 days

Overview

Length

74.5 m

Breadth

14.9 m

Draught

6.0 m

Gross Tonnage

2803 T

Ice Class Rating

Ice Class II

Dynamic Positioning (DP) Rating

DP1

Service Speed

10 knots

Maximum Number of Scientific Berths Available

25 berths available

Scientific and Technical Specifications

Laboratory Facilities

Science HQ room (35 m²), Automated fish-sorting room (130 m²) plus 4 separate labs (total: 84 m²) including hydrology (24 m²), physics (18 m²), chemistry (15 m²) and biology (27 m²)

Cold storage areas: 0°C (33 m²); -20°C (23 m²)

Scientific freezers (in physics lab): -40°C (100 l) and -80°C (100 l)

CTD/Plankton sampling

Lateral A-Frame (SWL 5t) with:

CTD winch (electromechanical cable, Ø10.8mm, L 6500m)

Hydrology winch (stainless steel cable, Ø10.8mm, L 8000m)

Additional planckton winch (Aft, starboard, L 500m)

Warning: The only CTD permanently onboard is a SBE 19plus (without rosette and niskin bottles)

Multi-Beam(s)/Sub Bottom profiling

EM304 (26.5-34.5 kHz),

EM2040 (200-400 kHz)

ADCP (38kHz, 150 kHz); Doppler Loch with ADCP option (600 kHz)

Sub Bottom Profiler (1.5-6.5 kHz)

Fisheries Echo Sounders/Sonar

ME70 (70-120 kHz, water column or bathymetry mode)

EK80 (18, 38, 70, 120, 200, 333 kHz)

MARPORT (trawl positioning) system

USBL

Posidonia USBL system (flush, 8kHz & 16 kHz)

Coring/Sampling Capabilities

Limited to shipek or day grab

Winches

2 x Trawl door winches (Ø26 mm, L 4500 m)

Dredging winch (Ø12 mm, L 600 m)

Netsonde winch (electromechanical cable, Ø10.8 mm, L 1500 m)

Communications

VSAT (1536 kb/s shore2ship; 512 kb/s ship2shore), Iridium, GSM phone and VOIP system

Special features

A-Frame (SWL: 10t in “mobile” position; 20t in “fixed“ position)

Main crane (SWL: 10t @ 10m)

SBE21 thermosalinograph for surface water analysis

CUFES (Continuous Underway Fish Egg Sampler)

4H-Jenna Ferrybox (C, T, dissolved O2, Fluorescence, pH sensors)

2 x Travocean tubes (12” and 20” for additional acoustic devices)

Meteorological station (atmospheric pressure, T°, etc)

Suitable Surveys

Fisheries & Biology, Hydrography & Oceanography, Mooring or seabottom gear deployment/recovery, AUV & ROV operations

Scientific Limitations

Not suitable for geoscience surveys (seismic, gravity coring)

Vessel capability to support ROV deployment

Yes (HROV Ariane, ROV Victor 6000)

Support offered to AQUARIUS users

Access to the vessel and full suite of onboard vessel equipment is provided. Please check equipment availability with the operator in advance.

Infrastructure Availability and Contact Details

Year 2025

1) Location: TBC: Probably in the Atlantic; Possibly in the Mediterranean Sea

2) Availability: Mid July till Mid August

3) Port of operation: Brest (or Toulon)

Year 2026

1) Location: TBC: Probably in the Atlantic; Possibly in the Mediterranean Sea

2) Availability: Mid July till Mid August

3) Port of operation: Brest (or Toulon)

Year 2027

1) Location: TBC: Probably in the Atlantic; Possibly in the Mediterranean Sea

2) Availability: Mid July till Mid August

3) Port of operation: Brest (or Toulon)

Contact email for applicants to discuss the initial feasibility of their work while they prepare their application

francois.perroud[at]ifremer.fr

Certification and Clearance Requirements

Medical Certification Requirements

In order to embark, all personnel (seafarers, scientists, etc) have to:

– Provide a certificate justifying their fitness for working at sea (the maximum validity being 2 years under the age of 55 and 1 year for people over 55)

– Fill a confidential medical questionnaire (For emergency response)

– Declare if they have special food allergies

For further details, please check this website

Are additional medical checks required?

Possibly, if special operations (such as diving for instance) are planned

Survival training certification required for joining vessel

STCW survival training, although recommended, are only mandatory for seafarers (e.g. vessel crew) but NOT for scientists (which are considered as special personnel / technicians), but French maritime legislation may evolve in the future.

Additional certification required

Ship security awareness training is recommended but NOT mandatory.

A safety briefing and safety tour will be done onboard with the vessel’s chief officer.

Diplomatic clearance or other permits required and any relevant information about the application process

Under the United Nations Convention on Laws of the Sea (UNCLOS) MSR/Diplomatic clearance is required for research cruises taking place in other EEZs (national jurisdictions other than the vessel’s own). Application forms should be submitted via Diplomatic Channels (Government Foreign Departments/Ministries) 6-7 months prior to sailing by Principle Investigators in conjunction with the vessel operator. RV Vessel Operations department will generally administer the application process but please consult with the operators in advance.

Any additional clearances required for area or type of activity

Yes:

– Access and benefit-sharing as established by Article 14 of the Nagoya Protocol (and here)

– If operations are carried out in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)

– An environmental impact analysis may also be necessary depending on the case (country/area/operation)

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RV Thalassa

Integrating Research Infrastructures – Connecting Scientists – Enabling Transnational Access

for healthy and sustainable marine and freshwater ecosystems