In the years since 1994, when the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) entered into force, the ocean law regime has been profoundly affected by an interplay of new forces in global ocean affairs. Numbered among them are innovations in technology and science, the emergence of intensified piracy and other challenges to maritime security, national, and regional programs. In Ocean Law and Policy: Twenty Years of Development under the UNCLOS Regime, experts from fourteen countries present nineteen papers that provide insightful analyses of these wide-ranging issues that form the emerging new context of UNCLOS as a keystone to a working regime system. Accessible as well as authoritative, this volume offers to general readers as well as academics, policy officials, and legal experts a set of important analyses and provocative insights, forming a major contribution to the literature of ocean studies.

Cooperation and Engagement in the Asia-Pacific Region provides valuable insight into a region that encompasses many important maritime regions, and harbors promising opportunities for maritime cooperation and engagement.

Unmanned ships and autonomous ships are quickly becoming a reality, making shipping safer and more efficient. However, traditional tasks and functions are becoming blurred as new technology changes how the unique needs of different sectors are met. In addition to large vessels dedicated to the transport of goods and cargos across the oceans, major efforts are underway towards the automation of small coastal shipping that includes ferries, tugboats, supply and service vessels, and barges. Automated vehicles are also replacing conventional ships for inspecting and servicing pipelines, drilling platforms, wind farms and other offshore installations. Automated shipping is explored in terms of economics, technology, safety and the environment under the broad themes of ship design and engineering, command and control, navigation, communications, security, regulatory issues, and training. This includes initiatives for autonomous shipping as well as civilian implications of military ship automation programs. This book is primarily for maritime professionals, regulatory authorities, insurers, and environmental groups. It also suits undergraduate students involved in deck officer training, and graduate students and academics involved in research in ship design, operations and management.

The maritime industry faces many pressing challenges due to increasing environmental and safety concerns. In light of these challenges, autonomous ships can provide potential solutions to addressing smart shipping, fuel efficiency, and safety issues. The development of marine autonomy technology will significantly improve the situation and is expected to become a cost-efficient alternative to conventional ships. Currently, automated shipping technology is rapidly transitioning from theoretical to practical applications as the number and scope of autonomous ship prototypes increase around the globe. These prototypes are widely used in both navy and commercial applications, such as ocean observation, coast patrols, underwater monitoring, and underwater production system operation. This reprint is a printed edition of the Special Issue on "Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships" that was published in the Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. It contains an editorial and 10 peer-reviewed research papers in the field of maritime ships, and the following topics are included in this book: ship control methods, collision avoidance, ship detection methods, and manoeuvring models and digital twin (DT) technology. The main goal of this reprint is to address key challenges, thereby promoting research on marine autonomous ships.

This book examines law and governance implications in relation to maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS). Adopting a multi-disciplinary approach, it focuses on a wide array of timely, topical and thorny issues, including naval warfare and security, seaworthiness and techno-regulatory assessments, global environmental change, autonomous passenger transportation, as well as liability and insurance. It also considers selected national and regional developments. The book provides an insight into the role of innovation-diplomacy as the driving force that could expedite the transition from automation to autonomy. After navigating through the complex law and governance landscape, it concludes by assessing critical findings for further consideration. The book will appeal to scholars and students of maritime technology, law and governance. Chapter 11 and Chapter 18 are available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

Autonomous ships, like autonomous cars, can guide themselves without human conduction. AI and the future of computers taking over the art of driving is now our reality. The autonomous ship is a vessel that can operate fully on its own, without a crew, and is equipped with software to manage its movements. The interest in this field is growing rapidly with conferences dedicated to this specific technology. Forbes has stated that autonomous ships increase efficiency, improve safety, and relieve humans from unsafe and repetitive tasks.

This reprint is a printed edition of the Special Issue on Maritime Autonomous Vessels that was published in the Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. It contains an editorial and 17 peer-reviewed research studies in the field of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS), Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs), Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), and underwater gliders, to name a few. The main goal of this reprint is to address key challenges, thereby promoting research on marine autonomous ships. There are many topics on autonomous vessels involved in this reprint, for instance, automatic control, manoeuvrability, collision avoidance, ship target identification, motion planning, and buckling analysis.