Hurtigruten’s new hybrid expedition ship, MS Roald Amundsen, has touched water for the first time during a launch ceremony at the Kleven Yard in Ulsteinvik, Norway.

The successful launch marks an important milestone in the construction of the world’s first hybrid powered expedition ship.

It will be fitted with large battery packs for reduced emissions.

Following in the footsteps the Norwegian explorer the vessel is named after, MS Roald Amundsen is set to explore some of the most extraordinary places on earth, including Antarctica, the Arctic, and the Norwegian coast.

There will be a full North West Passage crossing in 2019.

Construction for Hurtigruten’s second hybrid new build, the near identical sister ship MS Fridtjof Nansen, is well under way at Kleven Yard, where MS Roald Amundsen now will go through her final outfitting.

Take a look at a series of images from the launch here.