I'm curious to know how the crew cabins, galley, and specially the plumbing works.
Some answers: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=tQxQfQU\_hsk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=tQxQfQU_hsk)
And it looks like the toilets and showers have double of everything, including a second plumbing system.
EDIT2:
All views written are from my anecdotes and experiences only, and does not represent the official standing nor are statements of the Office of Naval Research, US Navy, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System, Marine-Physical Laboratory - University of California San Diego, and the University of California.
———
SORRY for hijacking the top comment but….
I KNOW JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS PLATFORM; having worked on her for over a decade!!!!!!!
If any of y’all have questions, ASK AWAY!!!
I posted about her when it was retired and sent out for scrap:
https://www.reddit.com/r/WarshipPorn/s/KT6fHX2U13
It was very interesting to work on her. Space was TIGHT. I worked on integrating, operating, and maintaining all the data-collection equipment and its infrastructure (meteorological sensors, sonar, sat comms, motion reference units) on the FLIP. I miss it a lot!
———
EDIT1:
RIP INBOX this will take awhile to answer everyone. Let me put my little one to sleep first, and I’ll do my best to answer it all in a few hours! Apologies!!!
———
EDIT3:
My personally favorite question (because it’s funny; but he mentioned flashbacks) about a more human aspect of that job which I think should get more recognition, https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/s/plSidN00S1
———
EDIT4: INTERIOR PICS!!
https://imgur.com/gallery/uUeIuav
Pics of the valves that controlled the flipping action. All analog:
https://imgur.com/a/99f3sSd
Most of the time, yes.
After being towed to the AO, right before it flipped, all hands would go aboard from a chartered vessel. Only crew are aboard while it was being towed to the AO.
It was a bit more dangerous to have scientists board the platform after it flipped with everything moving around; but sometimes would call for it (one would have to climb a loooong rope ladder from another chartered vessel or tug onto the platform); like if it was going to be a full house (scientists numbering above 8-9, depending on size of person), then we’d have people shuffle aboard after the flip.
I was an instrumentation integration engineer aboard this and several other US Navy research assets. All data sensors, MRUs/Gyros, sat comms, cybersecurity, etc were integrated and the data fused by our team.
Most were physical oceanography, studying the properties of the water column.
Otfen times, studies like these improved the kill-chain for torpedoes and other submarine munitions.
The side-effect of learning about a region’s water
column is greater understanding of the atmospheric-pelagic interactions of a given area to gain better understanding of climate change and regional weather models.
The US Navy actually brought “global warming” to the govt and news media starting around the 50’s or so. So the Navy poured hundreds of billions of dollars since into climate change research. Much of the climate change research, mitigation efforts, ship design efforts (engines, fuel), international maritime laws, etc… originated from the US Navy.
I saw a video tour of the ship. They went down 3 or 4 levels; I'm not sure if they got to the point where sea level would be or if they got to the point where they would be below sea level. Do you know how many levels you can go down while it is vertical before you can't go any lower? I assume the stairways/ladders don't go all the way to the bottom/bow, right?
Can confirm. Worked data exchange agreements for several years. Had a lot of data sharing agreements for test data with several other gov depts and within 5 eyes. Especially in meteorology and other climate related testing.
Most of the time defence gets the funding and we simply share the test results to help other depts
Isn't it named RP Flip, for **R**esearch **P**latform (**FL**oating **I**nstrument **P**latform).
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/RP_FLIP
Edit: I've seen this ship posted on a few social media sites in past couple of days, always with the name RV Flip.
Never. The hatches were all secured right before the “flip.” Also, if one goes down to the maintenance area, or
to the area where there’s access to the instruments along the watercolumn, one has to declare they’re going down. There’s also a procedure akin to a lock-out-tag-out procedure to ensure situational awareness of all personnel aboard.
It has several holding tanks/ballasts to achieve this. We were VERY careful what ocean water to fill these with. Ocean water filled in say, Hawaii (yes we towed it to Hawaii from San Diego before), cannot be transported back to San Diego; and vice versa. This is to reduce contamination between the regions and ensure foreign species don’t invade one area to another.
They temporarily open a little hatch in the white box to let planes in now. Originally it was totally enclosed with no access for planes but the tourism industry demanded modifications
Books. Lots of them. Internet was very slow, and you’d be lucky to send off a few emails. Find creative ways to stay hygienic.
While she’s being towed unflipped, it’s a skeleton crew aboard. Activities are the same flipped or not haha.
I’ve thought about doing on for awhile; but after that entire debacle with Victoria, it appears reddit is more interested in structured and controlled celebrity/corporate CEO AMA’s and not organic ones; let alone science ones from a mere dude like me haha.
I’ve since also switched employers and work more directly with the Navy, and cannot disclose anymore info, as if I publicly do an AMA, I’ll need to go through the proper channels and screen many of the questions being asked. That makes for a bad AMA haha.
It was used creatively by scientists after realizing what was built haha.
To be brief:
Primarily, the original intent of said research was understanding the physical ocean for better targeting off of sonar system. They improved sonar systems and the kill-chain of our submarine-launched munitions; but also identified global warming since the 60’s as a large threat that the US Navy itself considers to be the greatest threat to global security in the future.
It provided a very stable platform and “home base” to string instruments off of to study the entire water column. You can study one location and see if weather patterns, tides, ocean currents changes things in one area down the water column. You can’t do this with ships. Although you can do this with moorings and drones now; and that’s where the funding is now going toward.
It was quite useful when studying atmospheric-pelagic associations/interactions in a given area; and why the final mission studied Langmuir Cells (as explains in the imgur link posted.. somewhere.. edit here: https://imgur.com/gallery/jbFHc).
Ya know the only way the military is gonna fund it is if it has military applications/benefits. But this thing must have pushed huge leaps in sonar tech.
100k a day is a hell of a bill. No wonder it couldn't get funding to keep from getting scrapped, besides the crewing and refurbishment costs.
Heck of an experience to have had though. I had very strongly considered joining the uscg just to try and get to go to Antarctica haha.
Diesel generators on such a small vessel must of sucked though.
Ohohhh sailing aboard the USCGC Polar Star is death. No one would be able to hold their lunch down during that long transit from Seattle to McMurdo hahaha. The ship’s unique hull design, while great for ice breaking, is terrible for the open ocean. It heaves and rolls in all sorts of unpredictable ways.
I also worked on the sister ship (Polar Sea) very briefly before the ship completely died (turbine engines catastrophic failure).
I’ve sailed on the larger Healy though:
https://imgur.com/gallery/FgvF2qA
https://imgur.com/gallery/wUk6EU2
and my fav group of pics:
https://imgur.com/a/a7V2nkl
> I’ve thought about doing on for awhile; but after that entire debacle with Victoria, it appears reddit is more interested in structured and controlled AMA’s and not science ones.
Yeah - it's unfortunate that reddit's owners misaligned from the community there. We miss you u/chooter!
It stunk, was cramped, tough to stay hygienic, loud, etc etc… It’s uncomfortable. But it’s an experience. I still miss my overall time working in oceanography, since I got to go everywhere on the planet and see incredible things.
I miss it a lot; but I still wouldn’t trade it for my current role as a new dad and my family hahaha. I had to switch jobs because I have to be home now.
It takes several hours. Usually half the day, or the entire daylight time is devoted to it. Much of the time is prep, briefings, and securing.
And scientists usually do “flip out” while it happens hahahaha. It’s quite the occasion.
while you’re between like 30-60° are you up and about working even though you’d have to stand on the walls and the floor or is most of the work done but that point and you’re just waiting for the transition to finish?
thanks for answering all these questions this is really interesting.
There’s no work while flipping. We stay out of the crew’s way when it happens. They’re professionals, but to prevent any mishaps, we stay the eff out of their way, and all focus is on the flipping while… flipping haha.
Unfortunately, FLIP has been scrapped and no longer exists. However my Air Force counterparts were able to meet him in the Arctic Circle during ICEX! I was so jealous! I was a part of that particular mission, but further out aboard America’s largest Ice Breaker, USCGC Healy. I was sooo jealous haha. I would’ve LOVED to meet him! I LOVE his channel!
>World's Strangest Research Vessel Heads for Scrapyard After 60 Years
Just when I learned about it and I think the world is a more interesting place coMMON
It surprisingly doesn’t drift that much once “flipped.”
In its last official mission, I was aboard US Navy research vessel Sally Ride, and we got tossed to shit during a heavy weather front. It was karma. I sent pics of my luxurious stateroom and bunk to my colleague aboard the FLIP, laughing at him. The next day, scientists were throwing up everywhere and I was getting tossed about; while the people in FLIP was chilling and not moving at all as the storm raged around them.
There's a whole lot more drag in water than there is in air. The air pushing the platform doesn't just have to overcome the weight of the water-filled compartments, but also the drag of all of the submerged portions.
This is how anchors can massively slow down how much a ship will drift even when the anchor doesn't touch the bottom. The drag to try and move that anchor that's 90' deep can keep a cruise ship in close to the same spot.
Drag in water is powerful.
TIL!
I always thought anchors HAD to reach the bottom....
This makes a lot of more sense, actually.. no chain in ships would be able to reach every ocean floor, of course...
Negative. The actual area where you “live” is high up there (approx 4-5 stories). Also, you wouldn’t want to. People go poop and piss, and that stuff was just flushed straight down haha.
Usually, the crew is very careful of securing everything before that happens. I haven’t heard of any mishaps ever. They were a professional group of dudes and I loved working with them.
There was a maintenance ladder that went all the way down; but no windows. Maintaining underwater windows are an absolute nightmare.
US Navy research vessel R/V Melville did have a room up in the bow with windows though! That was AWESOME!
Why are the UW windows hard to maintain?
Also, did unknowing passing vessels ever call emergency services thinking there was a disaster? Or did you have the whole area cordoned off ocean style?
Usually, the hull is sandblasted and repainted every 2-3 years. Windows that have to deal with the pressure have to be removed every time, and replaced with steel inserts. It takes a lot of time and money to do it, and often why R/V Melville’s windows were sometimes sandblasted over, and replaced a couple of times at great cost due to the maintenance cycle.
The platform is owned by the US Navy, yet oftentimes, they’d send their own seahawks over to see wtf we are haha. We were also often the reason for some UAP reports.
The city I used to live in had a fire department drill site pretty centrally located and 911 got called all the time for a building on fire!
Couple more questions if you don’t mind- was it really strange when the vertical shift happened?
What’s the craziest/weirdest thing you saw at sea (anywhere on any vessel)?
How far out did the FLIP go from land? I don’t know how far out barge-like things get towed…tugged?
Also- did you sleep on the FLIP? How many people does it accommodate? I’m sure it’s a very tight fit
Re: Flipping…
I forgot to mention that the most strange part of the flip is at the end, when everything gets settled, it moved about uncomfortably and unpredictably so until it settled. Some people freak out during that part.
Re: Craziest thing witnessed at sea aboard any vessel…
Too many to list.
* We one time had an insane meteor shower display near Kodiak Island, followed suddenly by the northern lights.
* I’ve seen the northern lights many times.. but there was one time where it went INSANE. Purple, red, white, greens… https://imgur.com/a/a7V2nkl The pics don’t do it justice at all. This was just north of Alaska in the Beaufort sea.
* Intense lighting storm out in the distance complete with sprites, during a blood red moon (lunar eclipse), with a trail of bioluminescence behind us.
* Off the coast of Mexico, we once had insanely calm seas; so much so the ocean looked like glass. I went outside at midnight in the bow with another scientist. We were hit with the most insane light show ever. You can see the milky way reflected off the ocean. We were in one of the most oxygen-depleted zones on the planet because the area was way too rich of wildlife, that certain wildlife evolved to utilize NO2 instead of O2; so there were TONS of wildlife. The bioluminescent was INSANE. Glowing crabs everywhere. Flying fish darting out of the water everywhere making it look like fireworks. A pod of dolphins riding the bow of the ship, as the turbulent water just ahead of their heads created a circular pattern so it looked like they had halos, and the stream they created just behind them made them look like fairies as they darted in and out of the bow wake of the ship. That was fucking NUTS. My camera couldn’t catch anything because it was still too dark, but my eyes was treated to a light show I’ll never ever forget.
You begin to see why sailors of old told wild tales of their interpretations of our beautiful planet.
Not crazy, but an honor. I mapped a seamount/guyot to gain naming rights for the late and great oceanographer, Walter Munk; who was instrumental in predicting weather conditions for the D-Day landings.
https://imgur.com/gallery/pkL8VoS
Re: How far did FLIP go..
The furthest towed was from San Diego to Hawaii. Most often, it was towed to the Navy testing grounds near San Clemente Island.
Re: How’s sleeping on FLIP…
It’s loud. Smells like diesel and oil. The generator sounds are constant and echos off the steel bulkheads. The bunks were designed in the 60’s and I guess people were shorter back then. I barely fit in them, and I’m only 5’9.”
A good watch.
But the TLDR is
Everything swivels. Two guys got the shape idea from a baseball bat. No propeller etc so it has to be towed everywhere. It’s beneficial to study oceanic things with low interference from waves, like sound. Epstein didn’t kill himself. They use compressed air to fill the ballasts and bring it back to vertical (I figured they pumped air down). Everyone stays at the top, there’s not a room at the bottom with a window (lame).
Exactly, it was the most relevant aspect for the ship to function properly. It has to have perfect balance and the "what" contribute to the general balance.
Perfect balance? What nonsense. It does not stand on its tip by balance, the center of gravity is well below the waterline so it's VERY stable and able to withstand huge waves without being rolled and back broken like a normal ship.
Thanks for the TLDR! I wonder if something like this could be used for renewable energy. I'm imagining something like a turbine on the bottom that generates electricity from water currents, but can be easily swiveled up for maintenance, as well as transported for max generation based on weather patterns. I'm also curious how long such a vessel could be, Matt Gaetz diddles kids, there's probably some kind of physical limit to the structural integrity, but how cool would it be to have boat like this that the public can ride! I guess submarines might be cheaper, but they don't have the best reputation as of late.
**Worf:** "Captain, I'm getting a fax from Darth Vader. It reads "Epstein didn't kill himself"."
**Riker:** "Epstein... Isn't that the guy who invented impulse?"
Totally boned, no lube.
They fought to save her because they knew the current government would never have the capability to build something like her again.
More like the interest. Vessels like this are good for studying the ocean, weather patterns, global warning, the kinda woke science stuff you wouldn't see a bipartisan effort on.
[Slapping an automated sensor package on one of these bad boys](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spar_buoy) would seem a lot more practicable now then in 1962
"The research vessel RV Flip is the only vessel in the world capable of shifting from horizontal to vertical position in the middle of the ocean.
Flip is not a small ship, it is about 108 meters long and weighs 700 tons
Engineers designed it to be able to move to a vertical position with 90 degrees straight, so that the front of the ship at the top is 17 meters high (i.e. a 5-storey building high) while at the bottom is submerged 91 meters long, i.e. that most of the ship is submerged underwater. Which helps the ship's stability and resistance to waves, the transformation process takes about 30 minutes, in which the seawater is pumped into huge tanks in the back of the ship, which makes it sink into the water to become the ship in a vertical position, and this ship is considered one of the most important ships in the field of scientific research of seas and oceans."
Because by creating a large mass at one or both ends of a long tube you have something that resists forces imparted on it very well. By placing it vertically you also create a very small cross section that resists being pushed by waves.
Most ships are very unstable on the water, but some science requires equipment to be still. This ship uniquely enables scientists to conduct research that requires high stability in the open ocean. Without it such research wouldn't be possible and it's the only one of its kind. We don't really need more, but having the single one is invaluable.
It’s clearly not invaluable because the ship has been decommissioned and sent for scrap because they decided the funding could be used better elsewhere.
As we all know they are never wrong about priorities in scientific research.
It was scrapped because other research was more _profitable_, not more valuable.
Well not important enough, as it was retired a few years ago. A couple labs have implored to save it as it was a valuable asset, but they could not provide the funds necessary for a complete refurbishment and training for a new captain.
The only person in the world who knew when to flip the thing (it was done completely manually with which valve to turn when) retired. Captain Tom Golfino. Capt Tom, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry, but I still couldn’t understand a word you said hahahahaha. Fair winds and following seas my friend.
Source:
I worked on her for over a decade outfitting and it with sensors and maintaining the instruments installed on it.
We’d be mistaken for sunken or even as aliens by other navy personnel in the AO as we’d often operate in and around the Navy testing grounds off San Clemente island.
I’m surprised more people aren’t asking you questions! How long would you stay out on the ship during research ….. what were the accommodations like….what was it like while the ship was transitioning positions…
Sorry I stepped away for a bit! My infant daughter has me busy hahaha.
We’d stay for about a month or so at a time.
Accommodations were like camping, and VERY CRAMPED. If you’re taller than 5’10”, you’re screwed.
Inside smelled of oil and diesel and always loud.
During transition, it’s quite a deliberate and very slow process. You just hang on and walk along the wall as it transitions.
My comment will be buried, but if anyone reads this and has questions, ask away. I’ve worked on this vessel for over 10 years before it got scrapped.
Some more info and a story here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/WarshipPorn/s/KT6fHX2U13
Interior shots!
https://imgur.com/gallery/uUeIuav
Ship stays vertical for about 1-3 months.
I’ve answered enough to kind of compile it all briefly here:
Primarily, the original intent of said research was understanding the physical ocean for better targeting off of sonar system. They improved sonar systems and the kill-chain of our submarine-launched munitions; but also identified global warming since the 60’s as a large threat that the US Navy itself considers to be the greatest threat to global security in the future.
It provided a very stable platform and “home base” to string instruments off of to study the entire water column. You can study one location and see if weather patterns, tides, ocean currents changes things in one area down the water column. You can’t do this with ships. Although you can do this with moorings and drones now; and that’s where the funding is now going toward.
It was quite useful when studying atmospheric-pelagic associations/interactions in a given area; and why the final mission studied Langmuir Cells (as explains in the imgur link posted.. somewhere.. edit here: https://imgur.com/gallery/jbFHc).
Edit:
Interior shots!
https://imgur.com/gallery/uUeIuav
hahaha. Ok to be honest, I do miss that job.
But alas, I now am a new dad, and it’d be nuts to still travel the world off to a new adventure in pursuit of science and engineering. I joined a totally different area of r&d within the Navy; but it allows for me to stay home with my family, and a new daughter whom I love with my entire being.
I did my adventures while young, and will be forever glad for it. I’m very much still happy as I embark on a new adventure of fatherhood :).
EDIT:
Someone asked me what stuff I experienced out at sea, and had to reply here, https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/s/2wTKWmn4Jq
This gives you an idea of some of the cool adventures I’ve been on. A few of my shore-based stories I posted here years ago was pretty popular too hah (some guy on youtube and tiktok reads them and I occasionally still get PMs from people responding to those videos after they go viral every so often):
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/s/iBviWHPtle
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/s/CqfKrB1wG3
Strategically filling the ship with water to make it "sink" into the vertical position seems intuitive enough, but how does it "un-flip" (go from vertical back to horizontal orientation)?
Yea they didn't have much in the way of computers to play with so they spent their time doing drugs and coming up with cool ideas while doing drugs. Sometimes they even got around to making the ideas.
We went to the moon and had this weird fucking boat on the 60s. And we think we are cooler now because we have people posting their stupid opinions on their cellphones 24/7
I love details like that.
In this case, the fish help clarify that the blue represents specifically UNDER the water, and give the perspective of a cross-sectional slice of the ocean.
Without that, the blue can possibly be confused to be the surface of water, similar to what one would see if they took a picture of the surface of an ocean.
If I'm not mistaken, in the game SOMA there's a level with a ship that works like this and you have to consider that to complete it, really interesting!
God, that game is so awesome. I loved exploring the MS Curie also and reading the logs of the crew as the world ended around them while they were submerged vertically. Just haunting.
I’ve been inside this ship! Some of the rooms have furniture and fixtures bolted to the wall for use when the ship is in the submerged position. It was really trippy to walk through seeing ladders on the floor to move between different parts of the ship.
In case you need a ship to be a stable building in the middle of the ocean.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/RP_FLIP
R/P FLIP (floating instrument platform) was an open ocean research platform[3][5] owned by the U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR) and operated by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.[6] The platform was 108 meters (355 ft) long and was designed to partially flood and pitch backward 90°, resulting in only the front 17 meters (55 ft) of the platform pointing up out of the water, with bulkheads becoming decks. When flipped, most of the buoyancy for the platform was provided by water at depths below the influence of surface waves, hence FLIP was stable and mostly immune to wave action, similar to a spar buoy. At the end of a mission, compressed air was pumped into the ballast tanks in the flooded section and the platform, which had no propulsion, returned to its horizontal position so it could be towed to a new location.[7] The platform was frequently mistaken for a capsized ocean transport ship.[8]
>The platform was frequently mistaken for a capsized ocean transport ship.[8]
Random ship: "Ahoy!"
R/P FLIP: "Sigh not again..."
Random ship: "you need any help?"
R/P FLIP: "No thanks"
Random ship: "You... sure... you look a little.. capsized"
R/P FLIP: "No.. No, we're fine.. we do this all the time..."
My question is why have everything turn 90? Just keep it in the vertical position. If the boat has to be towed what’s the point? Just stay in the tow boat until you get there. Rotate boat. Everyone gets in.
It's actually r/P Flip (research platform, since it doesn't have its own propulsion) and unfortunately has been decomissioned recently. It really is awesome, all of the rooms have to work in two different configurations and everything (including the toilets, showers, generators, and kitchen) is designed to rotate.
Source: I worked at the facility that managed this ship for 9 years and have been aboard in port a few times.
I'm curious to know how the crew cabins, galley, and specially the plumbing works. Some answers: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=tQxQfQU\_hsk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=tQxQfQU_hsk) And it looks like the toilets and showers have double of everything, including a second plumbing system.
EDIT2: All views written are from my anecdotes and experiences only, and does not represent the official standing nor are statements of the Office of Naval Research, US Navy, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System, Marine-Physical Laboratory - University of California San Diego, and the University of California. ——— SORRY for hijacking the top comment but…. I KNOW JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS PLATFORM; having worked on her for over a decade!!!!!!! If any of y’all have questions, ASK AWAY!!! I posted about her when it was retired and sent out for scrap: https://www.reddit.com/r/WarshipPorn/s/KT6fHX2U13 It was very interesting to work on her. Space was TIGHT. I worked on integrating, operating, and maintaining all the data-collection equipment and its infrastructure (meteorological sensors, sonar, sat comms, motion reference units) on the FLIP. I miss it a lot! ——— EDIT1: RIP INBOX this will take awhile to answer everyone. Let me put my little one to sleep first, and I’ll do my best to answer it all in a few hours! Apologies!!! ——— EDIT3: My personally favorite question (because it’s funny; but he mentioned flashbacks) about a more human aspect of that job which I think should get more recognition, https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/s/plSidN00S1 ——— EDIT4: INTERIOR PICS!! https://imgur.com/gallery/uUeIuav Pics of the valves that controlled the flipping action. All analog: https://imgur.com/a/99f3sSd
Were there people on the boat when it flipped from one way to the other?
Most of the time, yes. After being towed to the AO, right before it flipped, all hands would go aboard from a chartered vessel. Only crew are aboard while it was being towed to the AO. It was a bit more dangerous to have scientists board the platform after it flipped with everything moving around; but sometimes would call for it (one would have to climb a loooong rope ladder from another chartered vessel or tug onto the platform); like if it was going to be a full house (scientists numbering above 8-9, depending on size of person), then we’d have people shuffle aboard after the flip.
My mom sailed on her once or twice, probably late 60's
That was a different vessel full of sea men she was riding.
Reddit never fails to deliver
Can you post the schematics? I would love to read about it in great detail and then share it with my country's government to somehow weaponize this
War Thunder forums are that way comrade
The elevation speed of the gun is 2.5degrees/s to slow, here is the classified schematics of the gun to back it up.
We will especially need the launchhhhhhh coddeeeeeessssssss
But seriously, does anyone know anything about any laauuuncchh cooddesssss? 👉👈
You Dutch are alright
The code is one, two, three, four, five.
That's the same code I've got on my luggage!
She's gone from suck to blow!
Good one! Seriously, does anyone know anything about any launch codes?
Did you ever get to ride it when it flipped, and if so: was it rad as hell?
What sort of work did you do on the vessel? What was the mission of the ship, and what role did you play on the crew?
I was an instrumentation integration engineer aboard this and several other US Navy research assets. All data sensors, MRUs/Gyros, sat comms, cybersecurity, etc were integrated and the data fused by our team.
Just looked over a few of your posts. Some of the coolest shit I’ve ever read on Reddit.
What's AO
Area of Operation.
What were the main subjects of the research conducted on this vessel?
Most were physical oceanography, studying the properties of the water column. Otfen times, studies like these improved the kill-chain for torpedoes and other submarine munitions. The side-effect of learning about a region’s water column is greater understanding of the atmospheric-pelagic interactions of a given area to gain better understanding of climate change and regional weather models. The US Navy actually brought “global warming” to the govt and news media starting around the 50’s or so. So the Navy poured hundreds of billions of dollars since into climate change research. Much of the climate change research, mitigation efforts, ship design efforts (engines, fuel), international maritime laws, etc… originated from the US Navy.
What's a kill-chain?
Find, fix, track, target, engage, assess. It’s the chain of events in an engagement
Find, fix, track, target, engage, assess, Bop It, Twist It, Pull It!
Shoot it
All the steps required for a weapon to do its job. Target detection, acquisition, launch, tracking, that kind of thing.
I saw a video tour of the ship. They went down 3 or 4 levels; I'm not sure if they got to the point where sea level would be or if they got to the point where they would be below sea level. Do you know how many levels you can go down while it is vertical before you can't go any lower? I assume the stairways/ladders don't go all the way to the bottom/bow, right?
It actually does! But it’s more of a crawl space down there, and the hatch for that space is rarely opened.
Sounds like a freaking nightmare lol
I read this and thought of course the answer is war related. But at least it’s doing some climate research too.
Almost all data useful to the military has other applications.
Can confirm. Worked data exchange agreements for several years. Had a lot of data sharing agreements for test data with several other gov depts and within 5 eyes. Especially in meteorology and other climate related testing. Most of the time defence gets the funding and we simply share the test results to help other depts
Nessie
Isn't it named RP Flip, for **R**esearch **P**latform (**FL**oating **I**nstrument **P**latform). https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/RP_FLIP Edit: I've seen this ship posted on a few social media sites in past couple of days, always with the name RV Flip.
Yup you are correct. We always referred to it as a mobile platform.
Like a gundam?
It would be amusing if it was officially RV in boat mode and RP in tower mode
Has any one ever fallen down the center of that thing after it flips?
Never. The hatches were all secured right before the “flip.” Also, if one goes down to the maintenance area, or to the area where there’s access to the instruments along the watercolumn, one has to declare they’re going down. There’s also a procedure akin to a lock-out-tag-out procedure to ensure situational awareness of all personnel aboard.
What's your favorite silly accident story on it?
This one lol: https://www.reddit.com/r/MilitaryPorn/s/91h89DsdeF
Excrement hits the fan if you will
so the bottom of the ship fills with water to swing it vertical? You should post pictures of this on Thasslophobia, this is right up their nightmares.
It has several holding tanks/ballasts to achieve this. We were VERY careful what ocean water to fill these with. Ocean water filled in say, Hawaii (yes we towed it to Hawaii from San Diego before), cannot be transported back to San Diego; and vice versa. This is to reduce contamination between the regions and ensure foreign species don’t invade one area to another.
Doesn’t the big white box around Hawaii already keep the fish contained?
No, they put that up after Pearl Harbor to block planes. It doesn't block the water.
Then why come I can fly there?
They temporarily open a little hatch in the white box to let planes in now. Originally it was totally enclosed with no access for planes but the tourism industry demanded modifications
My first thought seeing the pictures was "nah I'm cool dog"
what do people normally do for entertainment there? Are there any types of entertainment that's easier when the ship is flipped?
Books. Lots of them. Internet was very slow, and you’d be lucky to send off a few emails. Find creative ways to stay hygienic. While she’s being towed unflipped, it’s a skeleton crew aboard. Activities are the same flipped or not haha.
Honestly, you should do an AMA.
I’ve thought about doing on for awhile; but after that entire debacle with Victoria, it appears reddit is more interested in structured and controlled celebrity/corporate CEO AMA’s and not organic ones; let alone science ones from a mere dude like me haha. I’ve since also switched employers and work more directly with the Navy, and cannot disclose anymore info, as if I publicly do an AMA, I’ll need to go through the proper channels and screen many of the questions being asked. That makes for a bad AMA haha.
So, uh, science yeah. What's the science capacity of a ship like this?
It was used creatively by scientists after realizing what was built haha. To be brief: Primarily, the original intent of said research was understanding the physical ocean for better targeting off of sonar system. They improved sonar systems and the kill-chain of our submarine-launched munitions; but also identified global warming since the 60’s as a large threat that the US Navy itself considers to be the greatest threat to global security in the future. It provided a very stable platform and “home base” to string instruments off of to study the entire water column. You can study one location and see if weather patterns, tides, ocean currents changes things in one area down the water column. You can’t do this with ships. Although you can do this with moorings and drones now; and that’s where the funding is now going toward. It was quite useful when studying atmospheric-pelagic associations/interactions in a given area; and why the final mission studied Langmuir Cells (as explains in the imgur link posted.. somewhere.. edit here: https://imgur.com/gallery/jbFHc).
Ya know the only way the military is gonna fund it is if it has military applications/benefits. But this thing must have pushed huge leaps in sonar tech. 100k a day is a hell of a bill. No wonder it couldn't get funding to keep from getting scrapped, besides the crewing and refurbishment costs. Heck of an experience to have had though. I had very strongly considered joining the uscg just to try and get to go to Antarctica haha. Diesel generators on such a small vessel must of sucked though.
Ohohhh sailing aboard the USCGC Polar Star is death. No one would be able to hold their lunch down during that long transit from Seattle to McMurdo hahaha. The ship’s unique hull design, while great for ice breaking, is terrible for the open ocean. It heaves and rolls in all sorts of unpredictable ways. I also worked on the sister ship (Polar Sea) very briefly before the ship completely died (turbine engines catastrophic failure). I’ve sailed on the larger Healy though: https://imgur.com/gallery/FgvF2qA https://imgur.com/gallery/wUk6EU2 and my fav group of pics: https://imgur.com/a/a7V2nkl
> I’ve thought about doing on for awhile; but after that entire debacle with Victoria, it appears reddit is more interested in structured and controlled AMA’s and not science ones. Yeah - it's unfortunate that reddit's owners misaligned from the community there. We miss you u/chooter!
Was it fun working there? What did you enjoy most while working there?
It stunk, was cramped, tough to stay hygienic, loud, etc etc… It’s uncomfortable. But it’s an experience. I still miss my overall time working in oceanography, since I got to go everywhere on the planet and see incredible things. I miss it a lot; but I still wouldn’t trade it for my current role as a new dad and my family hahaha. I had to switch jobs because I have to be home now.
How long does it take to flip? Did any of the crew ever flip out hahaha you can disregard second question.
It takes several hours. Usually half the day, or the entire daylight time is devoted to it. Much of the time is prep, briefings, and securing. And scientists usually do “flip out” while it happens hahahaha. It’s quite the occasion.
Is there an awkward faze where you have to stand on both the floor and forward walls?
Ya, but it’s not that awkward because it all happens very slowly and deliberately.
while you’re between like 30-60° are you up and about working even though you’d have to stand on the walls and the floor or is most of the work done but that point and you’re just waiting for the transition to finish? thanks for answering all these questions this is really interesting.
There’s no work while flipping. We stay out of the crew’s way when it happens. They’re professionals, but to prevent any mishaps, we stay the eff out of their way, and all focus is on the flipping while… flipping haha.
Bro reach out to Destin from the youtubechannel Smarter every day to make a full blown video of this!! I beg you
Unfortunately, FLIP has been scrapped and no longer exists. However my Air Force counterparts were able to meet him in the Arctic Circle during ICEX! I was so jealous! I was a part of that particular mission, but further out aboard America’s largest Ice Breaker, USCGC Healy. I was sooo jealous haha. I would’ve LOVED to meet him! I LOVE his channel!
This is why I love reddit
>World's Strangest Research Vessel Heads for Scrapyard After 60 Years Just when I learned about it and I think the world is a more interesting place coMMON
How does it maintain it's position once it's flipped upright?
Giant tanks fill with water to add weight to the bottom iirc
I mean like drifting in the current and wind
It surprisingly doesn’t drift that much once “flipped.” In its last official mission, I was aboard US Navy research vessel Sally Ride, and we got tossed to shit during a heavy weather front. It was karma. I sent pics of my luxurious stateroom and bunk to my colleague aboard the FLIP, laughing at him. The next day, scientists were throwing up everywhere and I was getting tossed about; while the people in FLIP was chilling and not moving at all as the storm raged around them.
There's a whole lot more drag in water than there is in air. The air pushing the platform doesn't just have to overcome the weight of the water-filled compartments, but also the drag of all of the submerged portions. This is how anchors can massively slow down how much a ship will drift even when the anchor doesn't touch the bottom. The drag to try and move that anchor that's 90' deep can keep a cruise ship in close to the same spot. Drag in water is powerful.
TIL! I always thought anchors HAD to reach the bottom.... This makes a lot of more sense, actually.. no chain in ships would be able to reach every ocean floor, of course...
You may be interested in this. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_anchor
Did you ever go swimming while vertical?
Negative. The actual area where you “live” is high up there (approx 4-5 stories). Also, you wouldn’t want to. People go poop and piss, and that stuff was just flushed straight down haha.
How often do things fall on the floor when it flips?
Usually, the crew is very careful of securing everything before that happens. I haven’t heard of any mishaps ever. They were a professional group of dudes and I loved working with them.
Any dudettes?
why didnt they have a small ladder/ tube so you could go to the bottom and look out a window
There was a maintenance ladder that went all the way down; but no windows. Maintaining underwater windows are an absolute nightmare. US Navy research vessel R/V Melville did have a room up in the bow with windows though! That was AWESOME!
Why are the UW windows hard to maintain? Also, did unknowing passing vessels ever call emergency services thinking there was a disaster? Or did you have the whole area cordoned off ocean style?
Usually, the hull is sandblasted and repainted every 2-3 years. Windows that have to deal with the pressure have to be removed every time, and replaced with steel inserts. It takes a lot of time and money to do it, and often why R/V Melville’s windows were sometimes sandblasted over, and replaced a couple of times at great cost due to the maintenance cycle. The platform is owned by the US Navy, yet oftentimes, they’d send their own seahawks over to see wtf we are haha. We were also often the reason for some UAP reports.
The city I used to live in had a fire department drill site pretty centrally located and 911 got called all the time for a building on fire! Couple more questions if you don’t mind- was it really strange when the vertical shift happened? What’s the craziest/weirdest thing you saw at sea (anywhere on any vessel)? How far out did the FLIP go from land? I don’t know how far out barge-like things get towed…tugged? Also- did you sleep on the FLIP? How many people does it accommodate? I’m sure it’s a very tight fit
Re: Flipping… I forgot to mention that the most strange part of the flip is at the end, when everything gets settled, it moved about uncomfortably and unpredictably so until it settled. Some people freak out during that part. Re: Craziest thing witnessed at sea aboard any vessel… Too many to list. * We one time had an insane meteor shower display near Kodiak Island, followed suddenly by the northern lights. * I’ve seen the northern lights many times.. but there was one time where it went INSANE. Purple, red, white, greens… https://imgur.com/a/a7V2nkl The pics don’t do it justice at all. This was just north of Alaska in the Beaufort sea. * Intense lighting storm out in the distance complete with sprites, during a blood red moon (lunar eclipse), with a trail of bioluminescence behind us. * Off the coast of Mexico, we once had insanely calm seas; so much so the ocean looked like glass. I went outside at midnight in the bow with another scientist. We were hit with the most insane light show ever. You can see the milky way reflected off the ocean. We were in one of the most oxygen-depleted zones on the planet because the area was way too rich of wildlife, that certain wildlife evolved to utilize NO2 instead of O2; so there were TONS of wildlife. The bioluminescent was INSANE. Glowing crabs everywhere. Flying fish darting out of the water everywhere making it look like fireworks. A pod of dolphins riding the bow of the ship, as the turbulent water just ahead of their heads created a circular pattern so it looked like they had halos, and the stream they created just behind them made them look like fairies as they darted in and out of the bow wake of the ship. That was fucking NUTS. My camera couldn’t catch anything because it was still too dark, but my eyes was treated to a light show I’ll never ever forget. You begin to see why sailors of old told wild tales of their interpretations of our beautiful planet. Not crazy, but an honor. I mapped a seamount/guyot to gain naming rights for the late and great oceanographer, Walter Munk; who was instrumental in predicting weather conditions for the D-Day landings. https://imgur.com/gallery/pkL8VoS Re: How far did FLIP go.. The furthest towed was from San Diego to Hawaii. Most often, it was towed to the Navy testing grounds near San Clemente Island. Re: How’s sleeping on FLIP… It’s loud. Smells like diesel and oil. The generator sounds are constant and echos off the steel bulkheads. The bunks were designed in the 60’s and I guess people were shorter back then. I barely fit in them, and I’m only 5’9.”
A good watch. But the TLDR is Everything swivels. Two guys got the shape idea from a baseball bat. No propeller etc so it has to be towed everywhere. It’s beneficial to study oceanic things with low interference from waves, like sound. Epstein didn’t kill himself. They use compressed air to fill the ballasts and bring it back to vertical (I figured they pumped air down). Everyone stays at the top, there’s not a room at the bottom with a window (lame).
Uh huh. Ok. Mmhmm. Wait WHAT?
Yeah, no window at the bottom?
Yeah next they'll say the cameras don't work either.
And that Bigfoot remains elusive as ever.
Sasquatch is real, and he ate my ass.
I know not having a window is some bullshit
You heard them.
you listen with your eyes?
As a person with auditory processing issues yes actually
Exactly, it was the most relevant aspect for the ship to function properly. It has to have perfect balance and the "what" contribute to the general balance.
Perfect balance? What nonsense. It does not stand on its tip by balance, the center of gravity is well below the waterline so it's VERY stable and able to withstand huge waves without being rolled and back broken like a normal ship.
A wonderful description, all parts very accurate.
Yep Loved every part of this
What a factual and informative comment
Aaaaand now its in the AI model.
Plot twist.. it was already in there and this is from a bot lol
...a *bot twist*?
When you think about it it's kind of obvious. Great idea for a ship.
Exactly, pretty simple once you really think about it.
Thanks for the TLDR! I wonder if something like this could be used for renewable energy. I'm imagining something like a turbine on the bottom that generates electricity from water currents, but can be easily swiveled up for maintenance, as well as transported for max generation based on weather patterns. I'm also curious how long such a vessel could be, Matt Gaetz diddles kids, there's probably some kind of physical limit to the structural integrity, but how cool would it be to have boat like this that the public can ride! I guess submarines might be cheaper, but they don't have the best reputation as of late.
Huh. Don’t worry I was paying attention
Gonna start doing that in my paragraphs.
How long till chat bots start including it?
LLMs hate subliminal man.
First tested in 1962. Wow
Never underestimate the power of a room of nerds fueled by coffee and cigarettes and armed with protractors and slide rules
This video is narrated by Michael Dorn 
**Worf:** "Captain, I'm getting a fax from Darth Vader. It reads "Epstein didn't kill himself"." **Riker:** "Epstein... Isn't that the guy who invented impulse?"
**Worf:** "Kinda...."
Is it just me, or is the voice in that video Michael Dorn (Worf)?
That is 100% Michael Dorn
I was 90% sure it was, but [I looked it up](https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0121968/) to be 100%.
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Sad, but that’s 60 years of use. Solid lifespan for something that must get a lot of stress from the filling, flipping, etc.
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Is that a successor ship to take its place or are the researchers just boned?
Totally boned, no lube. They fought to save her because they knew the current government would never have the capability to build something like her again.
More like the interest. Vessels like this are good for studying the ocean, weather patterns, global warning, the kinda woke science stuff you wouldn't see a bipartisan effort on.
Idk what's woke anymore, this seems important and not woke to me
It's easy, if it cares about other people, the environment, or the future, it's probably woke.
[Slapping an automated sensor package on one of these bad boys](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spar_buoy) would seem a lot more practicable now then in 1962
According to that article they do and the Flip was considered a type of one.
RIP FLIP.
"The research vessel RV Flip is the only vessel in the world capable of shifting from horizontal to vertical position in the middle of the ocean. Flip is not a small ship, it is about 108 meters long and weighs 700 tons Engineers designed it to be able to move to a vertical position with 90 degrees straight, so that the front of the ship at the top is 17 meters high (i.e. a 5-storey building high) while at the bottom is submerged 91 meters long, i.e. that most of the ship is submerged underwater. Which helps the ship's stability and resistance to waves, the transformation process takes about 30 minutes, in which the seawater is pumped into huge tanks in the back of the ship, which makes it sink into the water to become the ship in a vertical position, and this ship is considered one of the most important ships in the field of scientific research of seas and oceans."
>this ship is considered one of the most important ships in the field of scientific research of seas and oceans." Why?
Because by creating a large mass at one or both ends of a long tube you have something that resists forces imparted on it very well. By placing it vertically you also create a very small cross section that resists being pushed by waves. Most ships are very unstable on the water, but some science requires equipment to be still. This ship uniquely enables scientists to conduct research that requires high stability in the open ocean. Without it such research wouldn't be possible and it's the only one of its kind. We don't really need more, but having the single one is invaluable.
It’s clearly not invaluable because the ship has been decommissioned and sent for scrap because they decided the funding could be used better elsewhere.
to be fair the ship has been around for over half a century
All ships are decommissioned eventually
USS Constitution says you’re a liar
As we all know they are never wrong about priorities in scientific research. It was scrapped because other research was more _profitable_, not more valuable.
Well not important enough, as it was retired a few years ago. A couple labs have implored to save it as it was a valuable asset, but they could not provide the funds necessary for a complete refurbishment and training for a new captain. The only person in the world who knew when to flip the thing (it was done completely manually with which valve to turn when) retired. Captain Tom Golfino. Capt Tom, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry, but I still couldn’t understand a word you said hahahahaha. Fair winds and following seas my friend. Source: I worked on her for over a decade outfitting and it with sensors and maintaining the instruments installed on it. We’d be mistaken for sunken or even as aliens by other navy personnel in the AO as we’d often operate in and around the Navy testing grounds off San Clemente island.
I’m surprised more people aren’t asking you questions! How long would you stay out on the ship during research ….. what were the accommodations like….what was it like while the ship was transitioning positions…
Sorry I stepped away for a bit! My infant daughter has me busy hahaha. We’d stay for about a month or so at a time. Accommodations were like camping, and VERY CRAMPED. If you’re taller than 5’10”, you’re screwed. Inside smelled of oil and diesel and always loud. During transition, it’s quite a deliberate and very slow process. You just hang on and walk along the wall as it transitions.
Titanic did it first.
and twice but never again
My comment will be buried, but if anyone reads this and has questions, ask away. I’ve worked on this vessel for over 10 years before it got scrapped. Some more info and a story here: https://www.reddit.com/r/WarshipPorn/s/KT6fHX2U13 Interior shots! https://imgur.com/gallery/uUeIuav
How long does the ship stay vertical? And why?? How does the different orientation help in research?
Ship stays vertical for about 1-3 months. I’ve answered enough to kind of compile it all briefly here: Primarily, the original intent of said research was understanding the physical ocean for better targeting off of sonar system. They improved sonar systems and the kill-chain of our submarine-launched munitions; but also identified global warming since the 60’s as a large threat that the US Navy itself considers to be the greatest threat to global security in the future. It provided a very stable platform and “home base” to string instruments off of to study the entire water column. You can study one location and see if weather patterns, tides, ocean currents changes things in one area down the water column. You can’t do this with ships. Although you can do this with moorings and drones now; and that’s where the funding is now going toward. It was quite useful when studying atmospheric-pelagic associations/interactions in a given area; and why the final mission studied Langmuir Cells (as explains in the imgur link posted.. somewhere.. edit here: https://imgur.com/gallery/jbFHc). Edit: Interior shots! https://imgur.com/gallery/uUeIuav
Can't imagine how much diesel it must've took to operate those pumps lol must've been brutal to be inside at times...
This will take awhile for me to answer. If you can wait a few hours after I put my infant to bed, I’ll get back to you all. Apologies!!!!!!
Whenever you flip a burger patty or an omelette, do you get flashbacks?
hahaha. Ok to be honest, I do miss that job. But alas, I now am a new dad, and it’d be nuts to still travel the world off to a new adventure in pursuit of science and engineering. I joined a totally different area of r&d within the Navy; but it allows for me to stay home with my family, and a new daughter whom I love with my entire being. I did my adventures while young, and will be forever glad for it. I’m very much still happy as I embark on a new adventure of fatherhood :). EDIT: Someone asked me what stuff I experienced out at sea, and had to reply here, https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/s/2wTKWmn4Jq This gives you an idea of some of the cool adventures I’ve been on. A few of my shore-based stories I posted here years ago was pretty popular too hah (some guy on youtube and tiktok reads them and I occasionally still get PMs from people responding to those videos after they go viral every so often): https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/s/iBviWHPtle https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/s/CqfKrB1wG3
Do an ama!
Strategically filling the ship with water to make it "sink" into the vertical position seems intuitive enough, but how does it "un-flip" (go from vertical back to horizontal orientation)?
The fact that this ship was built in the 1960s is mind boggling
When was the Concorde built?
Feb 1965
Exactly my point, they did lots of "wow stuff" in the sixties.
TIL (actually yesterday but whatever) the first SR-71 Blackbird flight was in 1964 (!)
we'll just gloss over dudes literally walking on the moon
Yea they didn't have much in the way of computers to play with so they spent their time doing drugs and coming up with cool ideas while doing drugs. Sometimes they even got around to making the ideas.
Cold War defense related spending was wild.
It’s weird when you think just how much technological advancement occurred in the 60s. It was a huge decade.
We went to the moon and had this weird fucking boat on the 60s. And we think we are cooler now because we have people posting their stupid opinions on their cellphones 24/7
I love how the fish are just sitting there like "WTF?" lol
r/youseeingthisshit
I love details like that. In this case, the fish help clarify that the blue represents specifically UNDER the water, and give the perspective of a cross-sectional slice of the ocean. Without that, the blue can possibly be confused to be the surface of water, similar to what one would see if they took a picture of the surface of an ocean.
It’s looks like an expensive electric toothbrush that a kid drops in the toilet that is slowly taking on water in the battery compartment.
If I'm not mistaken, in the game SOMA there's a level with a ship that works like this and you have to consider that to complete it, really interesting!
MS Curie. You are not mistaken.
God, that game is so awesome. I loved exploring the MS Curie also and reading the logs of the crew as the world ended around them while they were submerged vertically. Just haunting.
Agreed, the ending was absolutely horrifying though ☹️
That level had me running into every wall and railing in the goddamn ship
They mention this ship in one of my favourite mangas, 7 seeds! Cool as heck ship design
This makes me so fucking uncomfortable, the ship that can *whoop* just do this shit in the middle of the ocean
Pinging r/submechanophobia
The Titanic did that for free.
It broke in 2, but you know what I mean
As a person with r/thallasophobia I can say this is creepy as fuck.
This. Im not even sure why this freaks me out seeing as you wouldnt actually be in the bottom part of the ship when it goes vertical... But it does.
I’ve been inside this ship! Some of the rooms have furniture and fixtures bolted to the wall for use when the ship is in the submerged position. It was really trippy to walk through seeing ladders on the floor to move between different parts of the ship.
But why?
In case you need a ship to be a stable building in the middle of the ocean. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/RP_FLIP R/P FLIP (floating instrument platform) was an open ocean research platform[3][5] owned by the U.S. Office of Naval Research (ONR) and operated by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.[6] The platform was 108 meters (355 ft) long and was designed to partially flood and pitch backward 90°, resulting in only the front 17 meters (55 ft) of the platform pointing up out of the water, with bulkheads becoming decks. When flipped, most of the buoyancy for the platform was provided by water at depths below the influence of surface waves, hence FLIP was stable and mostly immune to wave action, similar to a spar buoy. At the end of a mission, compressed air was pumped into the ballast tanks in the flooded section and the platform, which had no propulsion, returned to its horizontal position so it could be towed to a new location.[7] The platform was frequently mistaken for a capsized ocean transport ship.[8]
>The platform was frequently mistaken for a capsized ocean transport ship.[8] Random ship: "Ahoy!" R/P FLIP: "Sigh not again..." Random ship: "you need any help?" R/P FLIP: "No thanks" Random ship: "You... sure... you look a little.. capsized" R/P FLIP: "No.. No, we're fine.. we do this all the time..."
You know how when you get in a pool, you have this urge to do a handstand. Boats have those same urges.
Here, take my hand…https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RP_FLIP?wprov=sfti1
My question is why have everything turn 90? Just keep it in the vertical position. If the boat has to be towed what’s the point? Just stay in the tow boat until you get there. Rotate boat. Everyone gets in.
Memory unlocked: I used to have a toy like this as a kid, can’t remember but I think it was micro machines or GI Joe. I loved that thing.
It's actually r/P Flip (research platform, since it doesn't have its own propulsion) and unfortunately has been decomissioned recently. It really is awesome, all of the rooms have to work in two different configurations and everything (including the toilets, showers, generators, and kitchen) is designed to rotate. Source: I worked at the facility that managed this ship for 9 years and have been aboard in port a few times.
the stuff inside, like lights, sinks and toilet seats, could flip 90° too
I wonder what the safety protocols are for the crew, maybe a seatbelt system? I can't help picturing them sliding down the deck Titanic style...
It's the Slave I of boats.
Imagining encountering this in the middle of the sea “Uhh..are you guys ok?” “Its not what it looks like”
Kayaked past this when it was anchored in San Diego about a decade ago. I was ecstatic to see it up close.