Everything about Hms Challenger 1858 totally explained
| Career |
|
Launched:
|
1858 |
Decommissioned:
|
Chatham Dockyard, 1878 |
Fate:
|
Broken for scrap, 1921 |
| General characteristics |
Displacement:
|
2306 tons (2343 t) |
Length:
|
200 ft (61 m) |
Propulsion:
|
Steam (1200 hp or 900 kW) and sail |
Range:
|
68,890 nautical miles (127,670 km) (see article) |
Complement:
|
243 |
Armament:
|
17 guns (all but 2 were removed) |
The fifth
HMS Challenger (launched 1858) was a
steam assisted
British naval corvette. In 1862 she took part in operations against
Mexico, including the occupation of
Vera Cruz, and in 1866 a punitive operation against some
Fijian natives to avenge the murder of a
missionary and some of his dependents. This vessel is noted for carrying the first global marine research expedition: the
Challenger expedition.
To enable her to probe the depths, the
Challenger's guns had been removed and her spars reduced to make more space available. Laboratories, extra cabins and a special dredging platform were installed. She was loaded with specimen jars,
alcohol for preservation of samples,
microscopes and chemical apparatus,
trawls and
dredges,
thermometers and water sampling bottles, sounding leads and devices to collect
sediment from the sea bed and great lengths of rope with which to suspend the equipment into the ocean depths. In all she was supplied with 181 miles (290 km or 335 km?) of Italian
hemp for sounding, trawling and dredging.
The
Challenger carried a
complement of 243 officers, scientists and crew when she embarked on her 68,890 nautical mile (127,670 km) journey.
Despite the great success of the Challenger Expedition, the
Challenger suffered an ignominious fate. She was commissioned as a
Coast Guard and
Royal Naval Reserve training ship at
Harwich in July 1876. She was finally paid off at the
Chatham Dockyards in 1878.
She remained in reserve until 1883, when she was converted into a receiving hulk in the
River Medway, where she stayed until she was finally broken up for her
copper bottom in 1921. Nothing, apart from her
figurehead, now remains. This is on display in the foyer of
Southampton Oceanography Centre. The
Space Shuttle Challenger was named after the ship
(External Link
).
See
HMS Challenger for other ships of the same name.
Image:Challenger.jpg
Further Information
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