The
FLIPresearch vessel (Floating Instrument Platform) is the only ship in
the world having the ability to flip from a horizontal position to a
vertical position while at sea.
The
FLIP ship is designed to study wave height, acoustic signals, water
temperature and density, and for the collection of meteorological data.
FLIP
is 108 meters long and weighs 700 long tons. According to Alan Bellows,
"when in horizontal traveling mode, the long, hollow ballast area
trails behind. When it reaches the desired location, the "tail" is
flooded until the nose sticks straight up into the air, taking about
twenty-eight minutes to reach vertical position".
Even
in stormy conditions, it is as stable as a fencepost, because most of
its length lies in the untroubled waters beneath the waves.
During
the flip, the crew stand on the outside decks. Scientists and
crewmembers literally walk up the walls to stay upright. Suddenly, the
aft side of the barge becomes its floor. That makes for some ingenious
engineering feats in equipping its bridge, galley, crew quarters and
scientific laboratory. Even its head, or bathroom, had to be constructed
to operate in a vertical and horizontal position.
In 1995, FLIP received a $2,000,000 modernization. The structural build
is currently excellent and instrumentation will allow FLIP to be an
oceanographic powerhouse in the future.
