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We are in the midst of seven sea days from April 14-20, sailing up the west coast of Africa between Namibia and Dakar. There are no port stops in between. And yet…
During these sea days, we will cross the Prime Meridian, Longitude 0°. This used to be the Greenwich Meridian. But because Greenwich (and the entire Eurasian tectonic plate) moves slightly every year, in 1984 the Prime Meridian was changed to the IERS Reference Meridian.
During these sea days, we will also cross the Equator for the fourth time. The equator is at Latitude 0°.
We were bemoaning that we would not be able to cross both points at the same time, giving us a rare reading of 0°-0°. The captain told us that such a diversion from our route would take an extra seven hours, which the ship could not spare. So we were stunned when on April 15, Captain Richard proclaimed during his noon announcement that we would indeed pass through 0°-0°!
This is an extremely rare event. Most cruise ships do not travel up the west coast of Africa. Those that do, do not sail that close to the coast of Ghana. This is only the third time in 10 years that Viking has done so. (The first was during the 2019 World Cruise. The second was three days ago, when the Viking Sky sailed our same world cruise route a few days ahead of us.)
This location is officially known as “Null Island.” This is a joke, as there is no actual island (or any kind of land) at 0°-0°. Thanks to the Internet, there are several fake websites describing the island, its history, and even a flag. One of the guests aboard ship wanted to go bird watching on Null Island, but was ultimately disappointed.
There is – or used to be – a weather buoy permanently anchored at 0°-0°. While it was photographed during the 2019 World Cruise, the Viking Sky failed to spot it three days ago. The official website says the buoy has not transmitted any data in the past 45 days. Guests aboard our ship also tried to spot it, but didn’t see anything. (We later learned that the buoy might have been removed in 2020 due to piracy threats.)
The whole day would have been fairly anti-climatic, except for two things. First, Gail hosted an impromptu felting workshop where guests were able to make a pin or magnet of Null Island. Gail gave one to Jim, a guest who has been collecting magnets at every port. Gail also gave one to Captain Richard.
Second, Russell and a fellow lecturer, Geologist Tony Waltham, provided running scenic commentary from the bridge. We have known Tony for several years, and he and Russell have a love-hate bantering relationship. (Tony calls Russell “The Elf King.” Russell calls Tony “Hot Rocks.”) We make fun of each other from the stage during our respective lectures. Today, guests were treated to both of us speaking simultaneously. We heard lots of feedback that it was like listening to a comedy act, and that our commentary made an event out of a non-event.
To celebrate the day, Viking dispatched a tender to take a photograph of the ship at 0°-0°. We all became “Shellbacks” when we first crossed the equator back in January. Today we officially became “Emerald Shellbacks” – a truly rare and remarkable distinction!
