A steel cutting ceremony was held for the CX103 expedition cruise design, the ‘Sylvia Earle’, on 16 March 2020 at the CMHI Haimen yard, China. She has been designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions AS for SunStone Ships.
The Sylvia Earle is the sister vessel of the Greg Mortimer, which was delivered in September 2019. Operator for both vessels is the Australian cruise company Aurora Expeditions.
The Sylvia Earle is vessel number 2 in SunStone's INFINITY series, and the fourth of the Ulstein designed exploration cruise vessels under construction at this yard.
Designed with the X-BOW® hull, the vessel will provide the best possible comfort for passengers in rough head seas, as well as being fuel efficient.
Aurora Expeditions' Douglas Mawson was officially named in Sydney on 27 November 2025 before embarking on her inaugural trip to Tasmania. This milestone marks history as the first expedition vessel featuring Ulstein’s X-BOW® design to operate in Australian waters. More than a striking visual signature, this pioneering hull shape represents a breakthrough in maritime engineering.
Guiding a nearly 150-metre-long newbuild vessel out of the dock hall with less than one metre of clearance on each side, while the wind presses from all directions, leaves no room for error. It demands meticulous planning, absolute precision, and a team that knows exactly what to do.
On 15 November 2025, Yard number 322 was successfully towed and positioned inside the dock hall at Ulstein Verft. The project is progressing according to plan, and key activities are now underway.