Photo: Instagram/Viking Cruises
Getting celebrities to become the “godmothers” of new cruise ships is the successful blend of a contemporary trend with the century-old tradition of christening ocean-going ships. Folks love it, and it certainly helps new cruise ships get even more attention when they’re launched. You might be wondering what does a NASA astronaut have to do with cruising, but it makes sense in the case of Viking Neptune.
Viking has started the new year with a bang, claiming to have scored the highest number of bookings in one week, in its entire history. In addition to that, its newest ship has successfully set off on a grand voyage that will last for 138 days. Passengers onboard the Viking Neptune will be visiting 28 countries, traveling from Fort Lauderdale to London.
Prior to the departure, the young vessel got a spectacular naming (or christening) ceremony in Las Vegas, this past weekend. And it could not have had a more appropriate godmother – Nicole Stott, a retired NASA astronaut and aquanaut.
Viking’s ocean fleet (separate from its river fleet) is now comprised of eight ships, and some of them were named after planets, including the upcoming ninth one, which will be named Viking Saturn. But out of all of them, the new Viking Neptune sports the most interesting name. That’s because Neptune is the planet named after the Roman god of the sea, which gives the new ship a special connection to both water and outer space.
The same dual connection is perfectly embodied by Nicole Stott. Her incredible career includes two spaceflights, and more than 100 days spent on the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station (ISS), in addition to some pioneering endeavors. Plus, as a NASA aquanaut, she also spent 18 days on the Aquarius Undersea Habitat.
Aquarius is a fascinating laboratory designed as an undersea habitat sitting 19 meters (62 feet) underwater, at about 5 km (3 miles) off Key Largo, in Florida. It’s been used by NASA for more than two decades, for astronaut training and for scientific research.
As for the new cruise ship, it’s sort of a secretive laboratory as well. According to Viking, it’s the only one in its fleet to feature a small hydrogen fuel system. The system is only used for testing purposes – the feedback from Viking Neptune’s journeys will hopefully provide insight into the use of hydrogen as fuel for cruise ships. In the future, this could be implemented on a larger scale on the next generation of cruise vessels.
The operator claims that Neptune is the first one in the entire cruising industry to start testing hydrogen fuel on board. While passengers will be enjoying their carefree vacation, the pioneering cruise ship will carry out its “secretive” mission.
Prior to the departure, the young vessel got a spectacular naming (or christening) ceremony in Las Vegas, this past weekend. And it could not have had a more appropriate godmother – Nicole Stott, a retired NASA astronaut and aquanaut.
Viking’s ocean fleet (separate from its river fleet) is now comprised of eight ships, and some of them were named after planets, including the upcoming ninth one, which will be named Viking Saturn. But out of all of them, the new Viking Neptune sports the most interesting name. That’s because Neptune is the planet named after the Roman god of the sea, which gives the new ship a special connection to both water and outer space.
The same dual connection is perfectly embodied by Nicole Stott. Her incredible career includes two spaceflights, and more than 100 days spent on the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station (ISS), in addition to some pioneering endeavors. Plus, as a NASA aquanaut, she also spent 18 days on the Aquarius Undersea Habitat.
Aquarius is a fascinating laboratory designed as an undersea habitat sitting 19 meters (62 feet) underwater, at about 5 km (3 miles) off Key Largo, in Florida. It’s been used by NASA for more than two decades, for astronaut training and for scientific research.
As for the new cruise ship, it’s sort of a secretive laboratory as well. According to Viking, it’s the only one in its fleet to feature a small hydrogen fuel system. The system is only used for testing purposes – the feedback from Viking Neptune’s journeys will hopefully provide insight into the use of hydrogen as fuel for cruise ships. In the future, this could be implemented on a larger scale on the next generation of cruise vessels.
The operator claims that Neptune is the first one in the entire cruising industry to start testing hydrogen fuel on board. While passengers will be enjoying their carefree vacation, the pioneering cruise ship will carry out its “secretive” mission.
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