NS Savannah

For other ships with this name, see Savannah (disambiguation) § Ships.

NS Savannah
NS Savannah reaching the Golden Gate Bridge in 1962
History
United States
OwnerUS Maritime Administration[1]
Operator
Port of registrySavannah
Ordered1955
BuilderNew York Shipbuilding Corporation, Camden, New Jersey, United States
Cost$46,900,000 ($18,600,000 for the ship, and $28,300,000 for the nuclear plant and fuel)
Yard number529[2]
LaunchedJuly 21, 1959[2]
Sponsored byMamie Eisenhower
CompletedDecember 1961[2]
AcquiredMay 1, 1962[2]
Maiden voyageAugust 20, 1962[2]
In service1964[2]
Out of serviceJanuary 10, 1972[2]
Identification
StatusMuseum ship
General characteristics
TypeNuclear-powered cargo ship
Tonnage13,599 gross register tons (GRT); 9,900 long tons deadweight (DWT)[2]
Length596 ft (181.66 m)
Beam78 ft (23.77 m)
Installed powerOne 74 MW Babcock & Wilcox nuclear reactor (LEU <= 4.6%[3]) powering two De Laval steam turbines[2]
Propulsion20,300 hp (15,100 kW) (designed) single shaft
Speed
  • 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) (service speed)[2]
  • 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph) (maximum speed)
Range300,000 nmi (560,000 km; 350,000 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) on one single load of 32 fuel elements
Capacity
  • 60 passengers
  • 14,040 ton cargo capacity
Crew124
Savannah (nuclear ship)
NS Savannah is located in Baltimore
NS Savannah
NS Savannah is located in Maryland
NS Savannah
NS Savannah is located in the United States
NS Savannah
Nearest cityBaltimore, Maryland
Coordinates39°15′30.5″N 76°33′19.5″W / 39.258472°N 76.555417°W / 39.258472; -76.555417
Built1961
ArchitectGeorge G. Sharp, Inc.; New York Ship Building Corporation
NRHP reference No.82001518[4]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPNovember 14, 1982
Designated NHLJuly 17, 1991[5]

NS Savannah was the first nuclear-powered merchant ship. She was built in the late 1950s at a cost of $46.9 million (including a $28.3 million nuclear reactor and fuel core) and launched on July 21, 1959. She was funded by United States government agencies. Savannah was a demonstration project for the potential use of nuclear energy.[6] The ship was named after SS Savannah, the first steamship to cross the Atlantic ocean. She was in service between 1962 and 1972 as one of only four nuclear-powered cargo ships ever built.[2] (The Soviet ice-breaker Lenin, launched on December 5, 1957, was the first nuclear-powered civilian ship.)

Savannah was deactivated in 1971 and after several moves was moored at Pier 13 of the Canton Marine Terminal in Baltimore, Maryland in 2008.[7]

  1. ^ "NS Savannah". Virtual Office of Acquisition. United States Maritime Administration. Archived from the original on June 23, 2007. Retrieved March 16, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Asklander, Micke. "N/S Savannah (1962)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Retrieved February 7, 2008.
  3. ^ https://lynceans.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Marine-Nuclear-Power-1939-2018_Part-2B_USA_surface-ships.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  4. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  5. ^ "N.S. Savannah (Nuclear Merchant Ship)". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 14, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2008.
  6. ^ McCandlish, Laura (May 13, 2008). "Savannah calls on Baltimore". The Baltimore Sun. p. D1. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013.
  7. ^ Smith, Van (April 13, 2011). "Mothballed in Mobtown". Baltimore City Paper.