Normally operating from her Pacific base at Seattle, Polar Star is used for exploration work at both poles, as well as in the Bering Sea. She is 399ft and is powered by three gas turbines, with three diesel engines for added propulsion.
CGC Fir is a buoy tender and the last lighthouse tender built specifically for the US Lighthouse Service to resupply lighthouses and ships. Built in Oakland by the Moore Drydock Co, she has been preserved, but was for sale in 2014.
The US Coast Guard Yard at Arundel Cove, Maryland, where much repair and overhaul work of Coast Guard ships takes place. The yard has built many small boats and lifeboats for the service too.
56 • May 2017 • www.shipsmonthly.com