What Happens Inside Star Of The Seas During A Storm

Star of the Seas was built to carry thousands of passengers through the Atlantic, but Royal Caribbean’s modern storm strategy was shaped by a night when another ship nearly lost control. In February 2016, Anthem of the Seas entered severe weather that produced winds as high as 146 knots and seas the captain estimated at roughly 15 metres. As the ship slowed, its stabilizers became ineffective and repeated Azipod ventilation damaged the propulsion system, leaving the bridge with restricted steering while the vessel heeled as far as 18 degrees. The investigation that followed changed how Royal Caribbean handles extreme weather, from new propulsion safeguards and heavy-weather training to dedicated meteorologists and stricter forecasting thresholds. Those lessons now sit behind Star of the Seas, a 248,663-gross-ton Icon-class ship designed with more propulsion redundancy, more bow thrusters, and an entire shore-based system built around avoiding the storm before the ship ever reaches it.