Blyth Catamarans of Essex, England, has launched Mary Anning, a survey vessel to be operated by Swansea University's Department of Biosciences.
The vessel has been named in honour of Mary Anning, a nineteenth century English marine paleontologist and fossil collector who, among other things, is known for her discovery of the first correctly identified ichthyosaur skeleton.
Mary Anning has a length of 18 metres, accommodations for 26 passengers, a cruising speed of 16 knots, and a top speed of 23 knots.
It will be used for coastline survey, mapping critical habitats, studying water quality, observing marine wildlife, and deploying marine equipment.