Bay Hydro II is a hydrofoil-assisted catamaran.[2] At 54 or 57 feet (16.46 or 17.37 m) in length (sources disagree),[1][2][3] she is one of the smallest research vessels in the NOAA fleet.[4] Her twin 740 bhp (552 kW) engines are rated at 2,300 rpm each and give her a maximum speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph).[2]
Bay Hydro II has a 3-by-7-foot (0.91 by 2.13 m) moon pool in her main deck amidships through which she can deploy a sonar on a retractable strut.[2] She also has two hull-mounted Airmar M42 dual-frequency transducers and an Interocean survey winch for use in towingside-scan sonar equipment.[2]
In addition to her sonars, Bay Hydro II has an A-framedavit rated for 2,000 pounds (907 kg), a 52,000 BTU (54,863 kJ) HVAC system, a 150-US-gallon (570 L; 120 imp gal) fresh water capacity, a full galley, and crew accommodations.[2]
Bay Hydro II is based at the NOAA facility at Solomons, Maryland.[2] She conducts hydrographic survey and environmental protection research operations in the Chesapeake Bay.[2][6][7] Upon her christening in April 2009, NOAA noted that her surveying capabilities were the state of the art at the time, and gave NOAA a capability to gather data to create highly accurate nautical charts, including data well on changes in dredged channels, and to respond rapidly to requirements to collect information on new hazards to navigation created by hurricanes, ice, and shipwrecks.[6] Her activities in the Chesapeake Bay support safe navigation to a number of large ports, including Baltimore, Maryland; Wilmington, Delaware; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and ports in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia.[6]
