Stevens’ Engineers Help Create the Vandenberg Reef off the Florida Keys

On May 27, 2009, at 10:24 a.m., the General Hoyt S. Vandenberg became the basis for an artificial reef in 140 feet of water, seven miles off Key West. Now resting in an upright position on the sea floor, the Vandenberg measures ten stories high in the water column, with the keel set at the deepest point. It is at the top of the structure that most of the ship's interesting attributes are located, some purposely cut from one part of the ship and welded elsewhere to make attention-getting dive spots from bow to stern, all trimmed to reach within 40 to 50 feet of the surface.

The successful sinking of the ship in an upright position, meant to maximize its potential as an artificial reef, represented the climax of weeks of model-testing and repeated sinkings of a mini-Vandenberg in the high-speed towing tank at Stevens Institute of Technology’s Davidson Lab, an integral department of the university’s Center for Maritime Systems (CMS).

“This was the first time we intentionally tried to sink anything [in a test],” said Davidson Senior Technician Bob Weiss. “We usually try to avoid that.”

Dr. Raju Datla, Naval Engineering Assistant Director at the CMS, noted the logic behind the extensive testing. “There were concerns about the ship not sinking properly, or landing it sideways [on the sea floor]…We were looking for how it sinks for different scenarios. In all the permutations we tried…all the time it sank properly.”

CMS researchers along with Stevens students conducted the necessary analysis and testing at their nationally recognized facilities.

Their work involved:

• Converting paper plans from the Smithsonian Institute into 2D cad drawing
• Converted 2D cad drawings into 3D iges files
• Constructing a model of the Vandenberg
• Testing the model in calm water and waves
• Building models of the interior main decks and bulkheads
• Testing the model for post sinking orientation
• Varying the geometric and environmental conditions to determine if the vessel would land in the proper orientation on the bottom.
• Advising on the proper method of preparation for scuttling
• Ventilation of entrapped air
• Ingress of seawater
• Providing advice regarding preparation for tow of the Vandenberg from Norfolk to Key West.
  

In April 2008, New Jersey Network’s Science and Technology correspondent Patrick Regan profiled the test-sinkings then being conducted at Davidson:
http://www.stevens.edu/press/media/mpgs/080404-vandenberg.mpg

All of this analysis led to the successful spring 2009 sinking of the mighty wartime cargo vessel in the tropical waters off Key West, as covered by CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/offbeat/2009/05/27/moos.sink.that.ship.cnn

With a hull measuring 500-plus feet, holes cut along the outside of the ship to help it sink provide swim-through opportunities for advanced and skilled technical divers; yet the properly certified and trained wreck-diver will be able to swim a full 475 feet along the starboard section of Deck 1.

Though it is unlikely divers underwater will be able to see end-to-end because the ship is nearly two football fields long, it is possible that one dive on the Vandenberg could reveal both shallow and deep-water fish such as Goliath grouper and sailfish, attracted by the clouds of bait expected to school around the wreck. Of course, it will take multiple dives to get a real sense of its scale.

And over the course of decades the ship is to be densely populated with coral species, sponges, invertebrates, sea fans and sea whips. Divers will want to make this Florida Keys Shipwreck Trail entry in their logbook over and over again to see the progression of marine ecosystems as they develop.

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Raju Datla
Research Associate Professor
Davidson Labs
Phone: 201.216.5568
Fax: 201.216.8214
rdatla@stevens.edu