TOKYO: Japan’s first Arctic research vessel, currently being built by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) for completion in fiscal 2026, will be named “Mirai II,” science minister Masahito Moriyama said Thursday.

The name was selected from over 7,000 suggestions solicited from the public.

Since 1998, JAMSTEC’s oceanographic research vessel “Mirai,” which means future, has been conducting research in the Arctic Ocean, but the ship has only been operating in areas without ice because it is not capable of breaking ice.

In 2015, the Japanese government drew up its Arctic policy in response to growing international interest in observing the Arctic Ocean, where the impact of global warming is evident. With the aim of disseminating its scientific knowledge and contributing to the formation of related international rules, JAMSTEC started building the research vessel capable of breaking ice in the Arctic.

Mirai II will be 128 meters long, slightly shorter than the 138-meter-long “Shirase,” Japan’s Antarctic research vessel. Capable of breaking sea ice up to 1.2 meters thick, the new ship will be equipped with observation and research facilities on board, such as weather radar, and will also serve as a mother ship for underwater drones.

JIJI Press