The Flip Ship (Floating Instrument Platform), a novel research vessel, was constructed in 1962 by the Marine Physical Laboratory and the US Navy. It is distinctive because it is 355 feet tall, shaped like a spoon and can stand vertically from a typical ship’s horizontal position. The most amazing feature of the ship is its capacity to switch from a horizontal to a vertical posture for study.

It is impressive to witness the flip ship’s remarkable change from horizontal to vertical, which takes around 28 minutes. By allowing water to enter its ballast tanks and fully sinking it 300 meters beneath the ocean’s surface, the Flip Ship can complete its transition into an accurate research vessel. The movement generated by the ship’s natural shape affects the efficacy of the measuring equipment, making it difficult to collect precise readings of the ocean’s waves and other marine data when a ship is in a horizontal position. This was the main motivation behind the construction of this research vessel.

The Research Ship was able to carry out its inquiry while standing vertically and independently of the waves thanks to the development of the Flip Ship, which could address the issue of monitoring gadget potency. The ship can maneuver in both shallow and deep waters and can withstand waves up to 80 feet high. The ship can reach a top speed of about 7 to 10 knots when propelled into the waves, and once it is upright in the water, no more assistance is needed to maintain it there.

Wavelength, water temperature and density, water acoustics, and other meteorological information are among the data gathered by the Flip Ship and may be helpful for the study of marine organisms and plants.

Let’s watch this special ship in action in the video below:

Source: Scripps Oceanography

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