National Geographic Endeavour

MS National Geographic Endeavour was a small expedition ship operated by Lindblad Expeditions for cruising in remote areas, particularly the polar regions.

The National Geographic Endeavour in the Skeppsbrokajen harbour of Stockholm, August 2008
History
Name	Marburg (1966–1982) Lindmar (1982–1983) North Star (1983–1989) Caledonian Star (1989–2001) Endeavour (2001–2005) National Geographic Endeavour (2005–)
Owner	Lindblad Expeditions
Port of registry	1966–2011: Nassau, Bahamas 2011–: Guayaquil,  Ecuador[1]
Builder	Weser Seebeck, Bremerhaven, Germany
Yard number	917
Laid down	1 October 1965[1]
Launched	26 February 1966
Completed	9 June 1966[1]
Converted	1983
Identification	Call sign: HC5241 IMO number: 6611863 MMSI number: 735058913
Fate	Scrapped 2017
General characteristics [1]
Type	Cruise ship
Tonnage	3,132 GT 1,045 NT 732 DWT
Length	89.17 m (292 ft 7 in)
Beam	14.03 m (46 ft 0 in)
Draft	5.7 m (18 ft 8 in)
Depth	9 m (29 ft 6 in)
Decks	6
Ice class	DNV ICE-C
Installed power	2 ×  MaK 8M582AK (2,387 kW)
Propulsion	Single shaft, controllable-pitch propeller Bow thruster
Speed	11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity	169 passengers
Crew	64

History

Caledonian Star passing through Antarctica's Paradise Bay, February 2001, just days before being hit by a rogue wave

The ship was originally a fishing trawler built in 1966 as Marburg, and converted to carry passengers in 1983. First named North Star, then Caledonian Star; she received her present name in June 2001.

On March 2, 2001, the ship was struck by a 30-metre-high rogue wave while crossing the Drake Passage. The wave smashed the windows of the bridge and ruined the navigation and communications equipment, but did not cripple the ship. She was assisted by the Argentine Navy ocean fleet tug ARA Alférez Sobral and reached Ushuaia three days later.^[2]

When National Geographic Endeavour was retired, the piano was donated to the Tomas de Berlanga school in Santa Cruz, Galápagos. The bridge ceiling, notched with polar bear sightings from her time in Svalbard, is with Sven Lindblad. The model, valuable art and other mementos were saved. Some items were transferred to National Geographic Endeavour II.

National Geographic Endeavour was scrapped on 6 May 2017.^[3]