August 22, 2012

Where was the Mystic Whaler?

According to www.marinetraffic.com, at 12:52 p.m. on August 9, 2012, this 34-meter long sailing vessel was sailing northwest of Block Island, Rhode Island at 7.1 knots.

Marinetraffic.com is an academic website that provides real-time information about ship movement and ports on coastlines across the globe for research purposes. The website also maintains information such as vessel details, port conditions, vessel position history and tracks, and various statistics. The data is collected by using Automatic Identification System (AIS) technology which is a vessel tracking system that records and transmits identification, position, and movement. It is available in real-time on marinetraffic.com.

On the website, moving ships are depicted by ship icons pointing in the direction that they are traveling. Stationary, anchored or moored, or ships moving at less that .5 knots are depicted by square icons. The icons are color-coded based on vessel type. Additional vessel information is obtained by clicking on the icons.

Now it is your turn: use Marinetraffic.com to find out where the Mystic Whaler is today?