The small cruise ship Ocean Nova can trace her roots back more than 30 years, to 1992, when she was built for Arctic Umiaq Line at the Ørskov Christensen Stålskibsværft, Frederikshavn, Denmark. Named Sarpik Ittuk when first in service, she was designed by the famous naval architects Knud E. Hansen, and was one of three sisters, with ice-strengthened hulls, for service as passenger ferries along the ice-choked waters of Western Greenland, supporting the isolated communities accessible most easily by sea.
Her sisters are still in service, and all are a tribute to the design and shipbuilding skills of the Danes. One sister, still with her original name of continues as, and is now named . In 2004-05 was rebuilt as an expedition ship for 50 passengers in 24 cabins.
