VT Halter launches ship

MOSS POINT, Miss. -- The 253-foot oceanographic survey vessel U.S. Naval Ship Maury was christened and launched Wednesday at VT Halter Marine's shipyard. The all-steel T-AGS 66 is an enhanced version of the T-AGS 60 class used by the Navy to gather data and provide information to the military and improve undersea warfare technology and ship detection. It can carry a crew of 67. It was named in honor of Matthew Fontaine Maury, the first superintendent of the United States Naval Observatory an author of the first textbook of oceanography. He was also considered the father of world meteorology. He died in 1873. VT Halter has built six of the original T-AGS 60s. (Source: Mississippi Press, 03/27/13)