RRS Sir David Attenborough: Ship leaves Harwich for Antarctica

The UK home port of the RRS Sir David Attenborough is Harwich, where it has been berthed while supplies are loaded on board

The vessel the public once hoped to name Boaty McBoatface has left its UK home port for a six-month expedition to Antarctica.

The RRS Sir David Attenborough has been berthed at Harwich in Essex since the start of November.

The £200m ship will call at Portsmouth before starting its three-week voyage to the Falkland Islands on Tuesday.

Captain Will Whatley hoped the ship would reach the Rothera research station, on Antarctica, by Christmas.

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"We will be offloading all the cargo there and then we will go to our other Antarctic research stations before heading to Punta Arenas in Chile," he said.

"The ship will deployed until about May or early June.

"The rough bit for us is the Southern Ocean and once we get across that, and below what we call the Antarctic convergence, it becomes a lot calmer.

"The ice kills away all the swell and it becomes a lot calmer."

The "McBoatface" name topped a public poll, but the Cambridge-based British Antarctic Survey opted to name its ship in honour of the veteran BBC wildlife presenter.

In the coming expedition, the RRS Sir David Attenborough will be testing a new artificial intelligence system will help chart the most environmentally friendly route at any given time.

The ship is home to about 30 crew and up to 60 scientists.

In the coming expedition, the RRS Sir David Attenborough will be testing a new artificial intelligence system which will help chart the most environmentally-friendly route at any given time.