Belfast Lough
It isn't an April Fool! Thursday will be to Bangor Marina berth holders the end of a long-awaited return to their craft after a roller coaster of lockdown, opening up and lockdown again over the past year. In Harbour Master…
Scientists Ask Boat Owners to Keep Lookout for Japanese Kelp in Irish Harbours & Marinas
23rd March 2021 Marine Science
Scientists from NUI Galway and Seasearch Ireland are asking divers and marina users to keep an eye out for Undaria pinnatifida, commonly known as Wakame or Japanese kelp. This species was first recorded in Belfast Lough, Northern Ireland in 2012,…
Artemis Unveils 'World's Most Advanced' Marine Simulator Unveiled on Belfast Lough
4th March 2021 Belfast Lough
Belfast Lough based Artemis Technologies, which is leading a programme to develop a new class of zero-emission high-speed vessels, has unveiled the world's most advanced marine simulator in Northern Ireland. The simulator represents a multi-million-pound investment over the past decade…
A mother and daughter were hospitalised after going overboard from a ferry in Belfast Lough on Thursday evening (25 February). As BBC News reports, the pair were rescued from the water by emergency response crews from the Stena Horizon and…
June's Bangor Town Sailing Regatta on Belfast Lough is Cancelled
19th February 2021 Bangor Town Regatta
Northern Ireland's biggest sailing event, Bangor Town Regatta, scheduled for June has been cancelled due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions. The Belfast Lough biennial event has sadly joined the queue of cancelled sailing events this year. Chairman of the BTR Organising…
Belfast Lough Zero Emission Ferry Programme Ramped Up by Artemis Technologies
8th February 2021 Belfast Lough
Staff numbers at Artemis Technologies, which is leading a Belfast Lough-based consortium to decarbonise maritime, are expected to almost treble to 70 by the end of 2021 and rise to 100 by this time next year. It is part of…
Queen's Parade on the seafront in Bangor on Belfast Lough has been largely derelict for well over twenty years. But just this week the Ards and North Down Borough Council approved a £50m scheme for large scale redevelopment of the…
Coastguard Issues Warning After Surfer Close to Belfast Lough Ferry Prompts Rescue Attempt
27th January 2021 Belfast Lough
Bangor Coastguard has issued a warning after a surfer was spotted close to an inbound Stena ferry in Belfast Lough on Monday (25 January) as Afloat reported earlier here. As the Belfast Telegraph reports, a team from Bangor Coastguard kept…
Stena Superfast Ferry Has Close Encounter with Paddleboarder on Belfast Lough
27th January 2021 Stena Line
Belfast Coastguard Rescue team was contacted this week by the Stena Superfast ferry inbound to Belfast in the shipping channel near Holywood. On Monday, January 25th the ferry had encountered a lone paddleboarder dangerously close to the vessel. Holywood is…
Bangor Marina on Belfast Lough is switching its electricity to a renewable source with immediate effect. Marina Manager Kevin Baird said the marina takes its responsibility to the environment seriously and is constantly looking at ways in which it can reduce…
The Maritime Mile is an initiative developed by Maritime Belfast Trust and is a curated experience that connects and celebrates Belfast's vibrant heritage waterfront. It was set up originally to deliver the Titanic Belfast Visitor attraction and now includes many…
Why Native Oysters Have Returned to Belfast Lough After a Century (Podcast)
21st January 2021 Wavelength Podcast
“Good news everyone”, the natives have returned...” It’s not your average title to a scientific paper, but this one has reason to celebrate - hailing the return of native oysters to Belfast Lough after a century. The paper by Bangor…
Peter Bullick is well known in sailing circles in Northern Ireland and has long been a familiar face associated with volunteering for the RNLI. He enjoys cruising to the west coast of Scotland and has ventured as far as St…
Coastguard Discovers Dolphin Washed Up on Crawfordsburn Beach, Belfast Lough
7th January 2021 Marine Wildlife
Last Wednesday (January 6th) Bangor Coastguard Team answered a report of a cetacean washed up on Crawfordsburn Beach on Belfast Lough. It was identified on social media as a Common Dolphin and it was suggested that the find should be…
Belfast Lough's Sailing History Given Added Insight by Regatta Portrayal of 1829
4th January 2021 Belfast Lough
The history of sailing in Belfast Lough became so hectic in the 1890s, with the pioneering development of One-design keelboat classes and the first of Thomas Lipton's five America's Cup challenges going forth from Royal Ulster Yacht Club in 1899,…
Marine scientists have been baffled by the unexpected return of wild oysters to Belfast Lough, as the Guardian reports. The threatened shellfish species was last recorded in the Northern Ireland lough in the late 1800s before overfishing destroyed the native population.…