Turbinia Turbinia Turbinia was the first steam turbine-powered steamship. Built as an experimental vessel in 1894, and easily the fastest ship in the world at that time, "Turbinia" was demonstrated dramatically at the Spithead Navy Review in 1897 and set the standard for the next generation of steamships, the majority of which would be turbine powered. The vessel is currently located at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England, while her original powerplant is located at the London Science Museum. Charles Algernon Parsons invented the modern steam turbine in 1884, and, having foreseen its potential to power ships,
The Thames (steamship) The Thames (steamship) The Thames was a British steamship lost in 1877 while exploring the western part of the northeast passage (the sea route east from Europe to northern Russia and East Asia which runs north of Siberia). With financial backing from Charles Gardiner, Joseph Wiggins – an experienced sea captain who had already twice sailed to the north of Russia, once entering the Kara Sea – purchased "The Thames", a 120 ton screw steamer, with the intent of surveying the Gulf of Ob and the Yenisei River and returning with profitable cargo. "The Thames" left Vardø in Norway on