German Oil Recovery Ship That Splits Into Two

The German Navy operates a ship of an interesting design, engineered to recover oil spilled into the sea. The Bottsand-class oil recovery ship, also known as a split hull oil recovery vessel, can split along its length to scoop oil contaminated water into its 790 cubic meter recovery tank. The twin hull ship feature a unique bow which can be opened by 65 degrees. This creates an area of more than 40 square meters to collect oil-polluted seawater. The water is pumped into the ship's tank, where it can be cleaned and the oil separated. The ship can clean up to 140 square meters of ocean surface polluted with a 2 mm oil slick in an hour. The two ships in the class entered service in 1984 and 1987, and are used to contain oil spills from German ships in the sea. Although owned by the German Navy, the ships are manned by civilians and not naval personnel.
bottsand-oil-recovery-ship
Also see: RP FLIP, the Strangest Ship in the World
bottsand-oil-recovery-ship-3
bottsand-oil-recovery-ship-4
bottsand-oil-recovery-ship-5
bottsand-oil-recovery-ship-0
bottsand-oil-recovery-ship-2

Credits: Amusing Planet