Orion, the Sailor's star...
this time of year sees many of the boats with a fresh coat of paint...
like the Sheila T...
the harbour is never short of unusual visiting craft, this one...
the ASV Thomas will leave Newlyn on Sunday 22nd of May, destination the Scillys to be deployed by the vessel Ble Thunder...
the wind and solar powered, satellite controlled remote research vessel will carry out a survey of wildlife and ocean data in a marine hotspot - where two water masses collide off the Scillys...
partly sponsored by the National Oceanography Centre and the WWF...
Thomas will carry sensors to detect marine life and simultaneously monitor the surrounding environment, including temperature and salinity of the water and weather conditions at the sea surface. He will be carrying GoPro cameras to capture images of seabirds and marine macro-litter, and passive acoustic monitors to detect clicks and whistles from echo-locating marine mammals such as harbour porpoise and common dolphin. He will be assisted in this task of by a sub-surface glider known as Drake, who will use a similar array of sensors to search up to 100 m below the surface....
though Thomas lacks the lines of this classic yacht moored nearby...
or even the sweeping curves of Mollie May...
looking spruce...
and another star...
a measure of how some feel in the port...
while this time of year makes an evening on the water something special...
her time on the slip...
half a dozen anglers crowd the end of the quay...
while the Sapphire sisters get together again...
for some of the visiting boats, Saturday night means getting down to some serious trawl repairs on the quay...
and the haker, Ajax prepares to leave the fish market quay after landing...
and head back to a berth for the night.