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Fisheries students from Japan visit Saipan
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Posted on Jul 04 2000
Every year, some 31 students from Shimonoseki University of Fisheries and 30 crew members on board the training ship Tenyo Maru sail across the Pacific as part of the four-year fisheries course.
After sailing for 60 days, the Tenyo Maru arrived on the island on June 29 where the students and the crew spent some time shopping, sightseeing, learn about the island’s culture and taste the local food. It was the second time for the vessel to visit the Northern Marianas after a cholera epidemic in Pohnepei forced Tenyo Maru to look for another destination.
While traveling, the students learned long line fishing and made oceanographic observation in the open sea. The training ship offered a navigator’s course and an engineer’s course under the guidance of Chief Officer Hiroyuki Kuroda.
According to Mr. Kuroda, the ship has been to Vancouver, Canada, Singapore and Malaysia. It used to sail in Thailand and the Philippines following the Morocco Straits but the threat of pirate attacks in the area had forced them to drop the route.
“We like it here and we might come back next year,” said Mr. Kuroda.
Tenyo Maru is equipped with the state-of-the-art fishing and navigation gadgets which allow students to carry out their research while out in the sea.
In order to upgrade the education and training facilities, as well as improve the living environment for the students and crew, the hull of Tenyo Maru was revised three times which now makes it 5.50 meters longer than it the original size.
Tenyo Maru is equipped with a fishing trawl, quick freezing system, CTD recording system and an Echo sounder for fish stock assessment which allows for underwater and sea bottom research.
The upgrading of the vessel for the third time in January 1996 at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.’s Shimonoseki Shipyard was also brought about by the increase in the number of female students now interested in taking up the course.
