At 50 meters (164 feet) long and 12.8 meters (42 feet) wide, the ship can accommodate up to 12 crew members and 18 scientists for voyages lasting up to 10 days offshore of California, as well as extended expeditions across the Northeastern Pacific Ocean. By comparison, the ship is 62 percent larger than our previous flagship research vessel, R/V Western Flyer. The larger size expands MBARI’s ability to study how climate change and other threats are affecting marine life and environments across the West Coast, from the Pacific Northwest to Baja California. 

The ship serves as the command center for MBARI’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) Doc Ricketts, a robotic submersible that can dive up to 4,000 meters (2.5 miles) underwater. MBARI researchers rely on this technology to study marine life, ecosystems, and processes deep beneath the ocean’s surface to increase our understanding of the midnight zone and abyssal seafloor. 

R/V David Packard can also support the launch and recovery of MBARI’s fleet of autonomous technologies, including underwater vehicles that can map the seafloor, conduct visual surveys of the midwater, and monitor ocean health. 

Our flagship vessel will greatly expand MBARI’s capacity for ocean exploration, allowing us to deploy diverse technology to understand our changing ocean and facilitate new collaborations to advance much-needed efforts to understand our changing ocean.