What is an apt name for a £200m ($284m) polar research ship? Sir David Attenborough? Usain Bolt? Pillar of Autumn? Not according to the general UK public, who voted instead for "Boaty McBoatface".

The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) invited people to come forward and submit names for their newest 15,000 tonne state-of-the-art vessel, equipped with robotic submarines, marine gliders, airborne robots, laboratories and environmental monitoring systems.

The Name Our Ship campaign was launched on 17 March and NERC suggested that the British public come up with names that might reference "a local historical figure, movement, or landmark" or a "famous polar explorer or scientist".

But by the time the voting closed on 16 April, RSS Boaty had become a favourite with 124,109 votes, 89,738 more than the second-most popular option, Poppy-Mai which finished with 34, 371 votes.

Our #NameOurShip campaign has now closed. Thank you all for your overwhelming interest and support. pic.twitter.com/xuSG0S7DaF — NERC (@NERCscience) April 17, 2016

What started out as a suggestion given as a joke by former BBC presenter James Hand, the name quickly caught an upward current and found itself at the top of the list.

While the name allowed NERC's campaign to gain "overwhelming" attention, it isn't confirmed if the council will allow their prized vessel to be named Boaty McBoatface. They have not officially announced the winning name as of yet. "Thank you to everyone who has taken part in the Natural Environment Research Council's Name Our Ship campaign," they posted online.

As for Hand, he has apologised for the silly suggestion and stated that it was the research organisation that had the final say.