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41-847: The USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum is a museum ship , located on the southernmost pier of the former Naval Air Station Alameda in Alameda, California , US. The museum is composed of the aircraft carrier USS  Hornet , exhibits from the NASA Apollo Moon exploration missions, and several retired aircraft from the Second World War and the transonic and early supersonic jet propulsion period. A number of compartments contain exhibits concerning contemporary carriers that are supported by related associations. The flight deck, hangar deck, and first deck below are open for self-guided tours. Docent -led tours are available into

82-949: A national historic landmark , and its role in naval aviation , the defense of the United States, the Apollo Program , and exploration of space. The USS Hornet Museum officially opened to the public on October 17, 1998. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin was the principal speaker. Attending dignitaries included Congresswoman Barbara Lee ; Honorable Jerry Brown – Mayor-elect of Oakland; Honorable Ralph Appezzatto – Mayor of Alameda; General Richard Hearney – Vice President for Domestic Business Development, Boeing Company ; and Rear Admiral Robert Chaplin – Superintendent, Naval Postgraduate School , Monterey, California. The USS Hornet Museum has many of aircraft on display including propeller aircraft, jet aircraft, and rotorcraft including several Naval helicopters. The aircraft are from

123-617: A crude estimation of the lightship's location relative to the approaching vessel. Tests conducted by Trinity House found that sound from a bell submerged some 18 feet (5.5 m) could be heard at a distance of 15 miles (24 km), with a practical range in operational conditions of one to three miles (1.6 to 4.8 km). Holding the vessel in position was an important aspect of lightvessel engineering. Early lightships used fluke anchors , which are still in use on many contemporary vessels, though these anchors are prone to dragging, making their performance unsatisfactory in rough seas. Since

164-428: A distinctive call (in this case KH6BB) is used. This radio work not only helps restore part of the vessel, but also provides worldwide publicity for the museum ship. A number of the larger museum ships have begun to offer hosting for weddings, meetings, other events, and sleepovers, and on a few ships still seaworthy, cruises. In the United States, this includes USS  Constitution ' s annual "turnaround", when

205-435: A popular Chinese mobile game with an English release that features anthropomorphic "shipgirls" including Hornet herself as Hornet II to distinguish her from the original Hornet . Later that year, Hornet was chosen to host Azur Lane' s live event celebrating the 5th anniversary of its English/worldwide release. Museum ship Several hundred museum ships are kept around the world, with around 175 of them organised in

246-560: A reserve beacon, in case of the main light's failure. Initially, lightship hulls were constructed of wood, shaped like the small merchant ships of the time, but this proved unsatisfactory for a permanently anchored ship, so the shape of the hull evolved to reduce rolling and pounding. As iron and steel hulls were popularized, they became used in lightvessels, and the advent of steam and diesel power led to self-propelled and electrically lit designs. Earlier vessels had no propulsion systems and had to be towed to and from their positions. Much of

287-436: A sense of how the crew got around. The interior features restored but inactivated equipment, enhanced with mementos including old photographs, explanatory displays, pages from the ship's logs, menus, and the like. Some add recorded sound effects, audio tours or video displays to enhance the experience. In some cases, the ships radio room has been brought back into use, with volunteers operating amateur radio equipment. Often,

328-831: Is a ship that acts as a lighthouse . They are used in waters that are too deep or otherwise unsuitable for lighthouse construction. Although some records exist of fire beacons being placed on ships in Roman times, the first modern lightvessel was located off the Nore sandbank at the mouth of the River Thames in London , England, and placed there by its inventor Robert Hamblin in 1734. Lightships have since become largely obsolete; being largely replaced by lighthouses as construction techniques advanced, and by large automated navigation buoys . The most important element of lightship design

369-496: Is a slightly larger type of vessel that derives its power from diesel electric generators. Where a main light with a visible range in excess of 20 nautical miles (37 km) is required, a '20 class' vessel is used, as the main light from a Trinity House solar lightvessel has a maximum range of 19 nautical miles (35 km). Hull numbers: 19, 22, 23 and 25 (the 20 class); 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 17 (solar lightvessels); and LF2 and LF3 (solar lightfloats). The first United States lightship

410-410: Is a tall mast upon which to mount the light. Initially, these lights consisted of oil lamps that were run up the mast and could be lowered for servicing, while later vessels carried fixed lamps which were serviced in place. As they became available, Fresnel lenses were used, and many vessels housed them in smaller versions of lighthouse lanterns. Some lightships had two masts, with the second housing

451-511: Is short for Feuerschiff , which means lightvessel in German. Two of them are normally located at: Both positions have the same characteristics: All three ships are operated by the Waterways and Shipping Office Wilhelmshaven and can be seen in the harbour of Wilhelmshaven during maintenance. In Russia , lightships have been documented since the mid 19th century. The lightvessel service

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492-671: The Civil War lightships were identified by name, usually that of the station where they served. As they were moved from station to station, however, the keeping of records became hopelessly tangled. Therefore, in 1867 all existing lightships were given numbers by which they would be permanently identified, and the station at which they were presently serving was painted on their sides, to be changed as needed. Lightships held in reserve to serve in place of those in dock for maintenance were labeled "RELIEF". Surviving lightships are commonly taken to be named according to these labels, but for instance

533-471: The Great Lakes ). The first United States lightships were small wooden vessels with no propelling power. The first United States iron-hulled lightship was stationed at Merrill's Shell Bank, Louisiana, in 1847. Wood was still the preferred building material at the time because of lower cost and ability to withstand shock loading. Wooden lightships often survived more than 50 years in northern waters where

574-530: The callsign assigned is a variation on the original identification of the ship. For example, the submarine USS  Cobia , which had the callsign NBQV, is now on the air as NB9QV. The World War II submarine USS  Pampanito , berthed at the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park , had the active service callsign NJVT and is now on the air as NJ6VT. In other cases, such as USS  Missouri ,

615-481: The rule of thumb being 6 feet (1.8 m) of chain for every foot of water. As well as the light, which operated both at night and in fog from one hour before sunset to one hour after sunrise, early lightvessels were equipped with day markers at the tops of masts, which were the first objects seen from an approaching ship. These markers were primarily red and occasionally white, and their designs varied. Filled circles or globes, as well as pairs of inverted cones were

656-789: The "Lightship Chesapeake " actually served at two other stations as well as being used for examinations, and last served at the Delaware Light Station. In another case, the LV-114 was labeled "NEW BEDFORD", though there has never been such a station. In an attempt to sort out the early lightships, they were assigned one or two letter designations sometime around 1930; these identifications do not appear in early records, and they are to some degree uncertain. There are three different and overlapping series of hull numbers. The Lighthouse Service assigned numbers beginning with "LV-" and starting from 1; however, not all numbers were used. When

697-524: The 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. Museum guests can get up-close to the aircraft displayed on the flight deck and on the hangar deck . Aircraft are sometimes moved between decks utilizing the ship's #1 aircraft elevator. Exhibit highlights include: USS Hornet was selected in 1969 to serve as the Prime Recovery Ship (PRS) for the Apollo 11 Moon mission. Hornet led the recovery of

738-646: The Baltic in the 1980s, it was briefly renamed Ventspilssky while serving near Ventspils port in the Latvian Socialist Soviet Republic . The last Russian lightvessel in service was Astrakhansky-priyomniy , of the same class as Irbensky. Until 1997 she was marking the deepwater channel leading to Astrakhan harbour while it was doing service in the Caspian Sea . Because lightvessels must remain anchored in specific positions for

779-651: The Coast Guard took over the lighthouse service, all existing lightships were renumbered with "WAL-" prefixes, beginning with "WAL-501". In 1965 they were renumbered again, this time with "WLV-"; however in this case the numbers given were not sequential. Given that only six vessels were constructed after the Coast Guard takeover, the "LV-" series numbers are most commonly used. It is estimated that there are 15 United States lightships left today. Among them: There are currently three identical unmanned German lightvessels in service, named FS1, FS3 and FS4. The initialism FS

820-776: The Historic Naval Ships Association though many are not naval museum ships, from general merchant ships to tugs and lightships . Many, if not most, museum ships are also associated with a maritime museum . Relatively few ships are preserved beyond their useful life, due to the high cost of maintaining them against the ravages of the elements. Most are broken up and sold for scrap, while a relative handful are sunk as naval target practice, scuttled to create artificial reefs , and so on. Some survive because of historical significance, but more often due to luck and circumstance. Since an old ship tied up at dockside, without attention, still decays and eventually sinks,

861-465: The Lake Huron Cut. From 1854 until 1860, the lightvessel that operated at Minots Ledge , Massachusetts , had a light yellow hull, to increase contrast between the blue-green seas and the hills behind it. David Avery and Robert Hamblin in 1731 placed the earliest British lightship at The Nore near the mouth of the River Thames . This was a private venture that operated profitably and without

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902-557: The United States ended on March 29, 1985, when the United States Coast Guard decommissioned its last such ship, the Nantucket I . Many lightships were replaced with Texas Towers or large navigational buoys  – both of which are cheaper to operate than lightvessels. In fact, lighthouses often replaced lightships. The naming and numbering of American lightships is often confusing. Up to and through

943-671: The approach to Kronstadt . Other Baltic lightships were located further to the West, with Werkommatala by Primorsk (Koivisto) harbour, Lyserortsky at the entrance of the Gulf of Finland , and Nekmangrund over the treacherous shoals off Hiiumaa Island's NW shore, known as Hiiu Madal in Estonian . Another well-known lightship was Irbensky of the Soviet Union era. It was the next-to-last Russian lightship. Having been located in

984-400: The case during the ships' historical period). Visitors without historical background are also often unable to distinguish between a historical museum ship and a (more-or-less historically relevant) ship replica, which may serve solely as a tourist attraction. Typically the visitor enters via gangplank , wanders around on the deck, then goes below, usually using the original stairways, giving

1025-411: The danger of rotting was reduced. Lightvessel 16 guarded Sandy Hook and Ambrose stations for more than 80 years; she had both an inner hull and an outer hull with the space between filled with salt to harden the wood and reduce decay. Several lightships built with composite wood and steel hulls in 1897 proved less durable than either wood or steel. The first modern steel lightship in United States service

1066-447: The early 19th century, lightships have used mushroom anchors , named for their shape, which typically weigh 3 to 4 tons. The first lightvessel equipped with one was a converted fishing boat, renamed Pharos , meaning lighthouse, which entered service on September 15th, 1807, near Inchcape , Scotland with an anchor weighing 1.5 tons. The introduction of cast iron anchor chains in the 1820s improved their effectiveness dramatically, with

1107-578: The first astronauts to land on the Moon following their splashdown back on Earth. Four months later, Hornet recovered the all-Navy crew of Apollo 12 . The USS Hornet Museum has the largest Apollo Program exhibit on the West Coast of the United States. Artifacts on display include: The Hornet Museum also hosts CarrierCon, a fan convention for anime, video game, comic and cosplay fans. In 2023, CarrierCon collaborated officially with Azur Lane ,

1148-464: The most common designs among them. For visibility purposes, most later lightships had bright red hulls that displayed the name of the station in white, upper-case letters; relief light vessels displayed the word RELIEF instead. Some vessels had hulls coloured for specific purposes. For example, the Huron Lightship was painted black since she was assigned the black buoy side of the entrance to

1189-574: The need for government enforcement of payment for lighting services. Further vessels were placed off Norfolk in 1736, at Owers Bank in Sussex in 1788, and at the Goodwin Sands in 1793. Over time, Trinity House , the public authority charged with establishing and maintaining lighthouses in England and Wales, crowded out the private light vessels. Trinity House is now responsible for all

1230-470: The old ship is towed out into the harbor and brought back in facing the other way, so as to weather evenly. A place on the deck is by invitation or lottery only, and highly prized. Many consider the tourism appeal of an interesting old vessel on the city waterfront strong enough that any port city should showcase one or more museum ships. This may even include building a replica ship at great expense. Lightvessel A lightvessel , or lightship ,

1271-634: The practice of recent years has been to form some sort of preservation society, solicit donations from governments or private individuals, organize volunteer labor from the enthusiasts, and open the restored ship to visitors, usually for a fee. When the USN turns over one of their ships to a museum, a contract must be signed, stating that the Navy bears no responsibility for the costs of restoration, preservation and maintenance. Also, major pieces of equipment such as engines and generators must be permanently disabled . If

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1312-412: The remaining lightvessels England and Wales, of which there are currently eight unmanned lightvessels and two smaller light floats . In the 1930s, "crewless lightships" were proposed as a way to operate a light vessel for six to twelve months without a crew. The first lightvessel conversion to solar power was made in 1995, and all vessels except the '20 class' have now been converted. The '20 class'

1353-437: The restoration and operation of traditional watercraft still in operation. Another consideration is the distinction between a "real" museum ship, and a ship replica . As repairs accumulate over time, less and less of the ship is of the original materials, and the lack of old parts (or even "appropriate" work tools) may lead to the use of modern "short-cuts" (such as welding a metal plate instead of riveting it, as would be

1394-417: The ship requires services such as electricity and water, they must come through shore connections. The restoration and maintenance of museum ships presents problems for historians who are asked for advice, and the results periodically generate some controversy . For instance, the rigging of sailing ships has almost never survived, and so the rigging plan must be reconstructed from various sources. Studying

1435-444: The ship was taken up by storage for lamp oil and other supplies, as well as crew accommodations. The crew's primary duty was to maintain the light; other tasks included keeping records of passing ships, observing the weather, and occasionally performing rescues. In the early 20th century, some lightships were fitted with warning bells mounted on their structure or lowered into the water, to warn of danger in poor visibility and to permit

1476-635: The ship's navigation and flight deck control areas of the island and down into one of the engineering spaces containing two of the four ship's propulsion turbines. The exhibits are on and in the USS Hornet itself, a retired aircraft carrier that was launched during WW2 and served in many historic battles such as the Liberation of the Philippines and naval battles in the Pacific. After the war she

1517-496: The ships also allows historians to analyze how life on and operation of the ships took place. Numerous scientific papers have been written on ship restoration and maintenance, and international conferences are held discussing the latest developments. Some years ago, the Barcelona Charter was signed by a variety of international owner organizations of traditional vessels, and provides certain accepted minimum criteria for

1558-520: Was established at Chesapeake Bay in 1820, and the total number around the coast peaked in 1909 with 56 locations marked. Of those ships, 168 were constructed by the United States Lighthouse Service and six by the United States Coast Guard , which absorbed it in 1939. From 1820 until 1983, there were 179 lightships built for the U.S. government, and they were assigned to 116 separate light stations on four coasts (including

1599-473: Was lightvessel 44 built in 1882. One of the last United States wooden hulled lightships built, lightvessel 74, went into service at Portland, Maine, in 1902. The first United States lightships with steam engine propulsion were built in 1891 for service on the Great Lakes where seasonal ice required prompt evacuation of light stations to avoid destruction of the lightships. The official use of lightships in

1640-919: Was subordinated to the Russian Hydrographic Office and most of the lightships under it were in the Baltic Sea . In the early 1900s there were about ten lightships in the Russian sector of the Baltics. Among these the following may be mentioned: Yelaginsky , located on the Yelagin Channel  – later moved to the Petrovsky Channel and renamed, Nevsky in the middle of the main channel to St. Petersburg , and Londonsky on Londonsky Shoal off Kotlin Island on

1681-413: Was used to search for submarines and secure airspace, and had a special role in space exploration, being used to recover returning space capsules in the space race. The ship was decommissioned 1970, and held in storage, but in the 1990s was registered as a historic landmark and made into a museum which opened in 1998. Aircraft Carrier Hornet Foundation preserves and honors the legacy of USS  Hornet ,

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