All Aboard! China's Shi Yan 6 is open to the Sri Lankan public

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Chinese geophysical scientific research vessel Shi Yan 6 which is docked at the Port of Colombo, is open for public viewing on Friday and Saturday. 

The Chinese geophysical scientific research vessel Shi Yan 6 made regional headlines, after India expressed concern over the movements of the vessel on its journey to Sri Lanka.

India raised its concerns at the highest diplomatic level as well. 

However, the Chinese geophysical scientific research vessel Shi Yan 6 docked at the Port of Colombo on 25th October, as planned.

The Shi Yan 6 is berthed at the South Asia Gateway Terminals of the Port of Colombo.

Commissioned in 2020, the Shi Yan 6 is registered with the International Maritime Organization registration as a 'Research Vessel'.

It is 90.6 meters in length, and is 17 meters wide.

The Shi Yan 6 is equipped with the latest and modern technology that can monitor the ocean bed, and it also comprises laboratories to test the samples obtained from the ocean floor.

Weighing 260 tonnes, the Shi Yan 6 can accommodate 60 people.

The Shi Yan 6 left the departed from Ghuangzhou in China on the 11th of September, and entered the Indian Ocean region on the 19th of September.

Its voyage included navigating the Ninety East Ridge, a mid-ocean ridge on the Indian Ocean floor named for its near-parallel strike along the 90th meridian at the center of the Eastern Hemisphere, in the Exclusive Economic Zone of India in the Indian Ocean, and other locations as well.

Maritime Data also revealed that the vessel moved within the Sea of Sri Lanka at times.

Earlier, it was mentioned that the Shi Yan 6 would be allowed to enter Sri Lanka on the 25th of October, and Foreign Minister Ali Sabry in New York said that permission was not granted for the ship.

The Foreign Ministry later said that the vessels' arrival could be delayed to late October.

However, as planned, the Shi Yan 6 reached the Port of Colombo, while the Foreign Ministry said that the vessel would only be in Sri Lanka for replenishment purposes.

The Shi Yan 6 has so far not been given permission to engage in any form of research or survey in the Sea of Sri Lanka.