Jubilant 21st Anniversary Flotilla.

September 26, 2023

· by Tracey Welch

PNL Jubilant 21 St Anniversary Flotilla. 09.09.23

Last month, when it was still feeling summery, I found myself on a boat on the Thames photographing the anniversary flotilla of the Jubilant.

Jubilant – the red boat in the picture above – was built in Richmond in 2002. It was a gift to Queen Elizabeth II for her Golden Jubilee from the Thames Traditional Rowing Association, making it 21 this year!

On 9th September they replicated it’s first journey where it carried a strontium ion clock, entrusted by The National Physical Laboratory (NPL), to be delivered to the Royal Observatory in Greenwich Park by the Jubilant crew. It was great to see it pass all of the iconic London landmarks as it travelled the 30km from Isleworth.

For those of you wondering, a strontium ion clock tracks the passage of time by observing what is known as the atomic pendulum. This is the frequency by which atoms are absorbed between two laser beams. It is so incredibly accurate that it will neither gain nor lose a single second even after a million years!

Thanks to Reza who commissioned me on behalf of the NPL to document this occasion. It was a great day with a fantastic energy and lovely people.