Aurora Expeditions christens Sylvia...

The ship's namesake, scientist and explorer Dr Sylvia Earle, was in attendance

Aurora Expeditions has officially christened its latest vessel, the Sylvia Earle, at Cierva Cove, Antarctica, in the presence of its namesake and godmother, Dr Sylvia Earle.

Speaking at the ceremony, Earle said: “Thank you, Aurora, for the approach that you use to keep people inspired about the ocean, for exploring the ocean and using knowledge to take care of all this on our planet.

"This is an experience that I am happy to share with everyone here and I’m looking at Aurora as the voice of the ocean.”

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Earle is a marine biologist, oceanographer and explorer who was the first female chief scientist of the US National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration and a National Geographic explorer-in-residence since 1998.

Named ‘Hero of the Planet’ by Time magazine, Earle runs a conservation initiative called Mission Blue, focused on creating a global network of marine protected areas known as 'Hope Spots'.

Aurora Expeditions CEO Michael Heath added: “We are privileged to have Dr Earle as the namesake of our stunning second purpose-built expedition ship. I thank Sylvia for joining us on board to officially christen the ship and be on board for the inaugural Antarctic Climate Expedition.”

Earle has partnered with Aurora Expeditions and Ocean Geographic to lead the first Antarctic Climate Expedition on the ship to raise awareness of the environmental importance of the Antarctic.

Along with a deck dedicated to Earle, each of the ship’s decks is named after other female conservationists including Jo Ruxton (MBE), Dr Carden Wallace (AM), Sharon Kwok, Bernadette Demientieff, Dr Asha de Vos and Hanli Prinsloo.

For more information, visit www.auroraexpeditions.com.au