RV Robert Gordon Sproul

RV Robert Gordon Sproul, sometimes shortened to Sproul, is a research vessel operated by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) as part of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) fleet.^[3] The ship is named after Robert Gordon Sproul, the first system-wide president of the University of California.

RV Robert Gordon Sproul in Point Loma in 2024
History
United States
Name	Robert Gordon Sproul
Namesake	Robert Gordon Sproul, first president of the University of California
Owner	Regents of the University of California[1]
Operator	Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO), University of California, San Diego
Builder	Steiner Fabricators, Bayou La Batre, Alabama[2]
Launched	1981
Acquired	by SIO, 27 July 1984
Renamed	1984 from Midnight Alaskan[2]
Homeport	Point Loma, San Diego, California
Identification	IMO number: 8128747 MMSI number: 303272000 Callsign: WSQ2674[1]
Status	Active
General characteristics
Type	UNOLS coastal/local research vessel[3]
Tonnage	85 GT
Displacement	696 long tons (707 t)[1]
Length	125 ft (38.1 m)[1]
Beam	32 ft 5 in (9.9 m)[1]
Draft	9.5 ft (2.9 m)[1]
Decks	3
Propulsion	Dual fixed-pitch propellers 675 hp (503 kW) Detroit Diesel[1]
Speed	8.5 knots (15.7 km/h; 9.8 mph)
Range	4,300 nmi (8,000 km; 4,900 mi) at 8.5 kn[1]
Endurance	21 days (provisions) 14 days (fuel)[1]
Capacity	340 sq ft (32 m2) lab space[1] Provision for 1 20 ft (6.1 m) lab van Fuel: 25,000 US gal (95,000 L)[1]
Crew	5 civilian mariners; 12 scientific party[1]

Construction

The RV Sproul was constructed in Bayou La Batre, Alabama by Steiner Fabricators in 1981 under the name of Midnight Alaskan.^[2] It was built using a modified gulf coast design for use by oil rig companies.

Acquisition by Scripps

The vessel was purchased by Scripps director William Nierenberg on July 27, 1984, as a replacement for the outgoing RV E. B. Scripps.^[4] She was purchased from the chartering firm Midnight Boats, based in Louisiana, with SIO using the marine broker company Marcon International, Inc.^[5] After being purchased, she was renamed after Robert Gordon Sproul and underwent a number of modifications for increased scientific research along the Coast of California and Gulf of California.

She departed Louisiana in August and embarked on her first scientific cruise to study seals near the Yucatán Peninsula, then traveling through the Panama Canal and docking in San Diego in October 1984.^[4]

In 1991, then-captain Louis Zimm estimated the ship to be valuated at $3 million.^[6]

Between September 2014 and December 2015, Sproul completed all operations using 100% biofuel.^[7]