Coast Guard Icebreaker returns from Operation Deep Freeze
The Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star is scheduled to return to their homeport of Coast Guard Base Seattle at 10 a.m., Friday, March 21, 2014, following a 108-day deployment of Operation Deep Freeze 2014. Polar Star departed Seattle Dec. 3rd, 2013, and made port calls in Honolulu, Sydney, Australia, McMurdo Station, Antarctica, and Tahiti, French Polynesia. Having completed a reactivation that began four years ago, this deployment marks the first time in six years that a U.S. icebreaker has supported Operation Deep Freeze, the U.S. Antarctic Program’s resupply efforts of McMurdo Station, Antarctica. In January, Polar Star departed Sydney to assist in the rescue effort of two ships, the Russian vessel Akademik Shokalsiky and the Chinese vessel Xue Long.
Antarctic Ice-bound Ships Moving: US Rescue Mission Icebreaker Stands Down
Both the 'Akademik Shokalskiy' and the 'Xue Long' have managed to break free from heavy ice in Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica, informs the Australian Maritime Safety Authority’s (AMSA) Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC Australia). According to the the U.S. Coast Guard, the Cutter Polar Star was released by AMSA from search and rescue duties after the Coast Guard Pacific Area command center received confirmation that both ships had broken through the heavy ice. At about 7-30pm AEDT on Tuesday…
Antarctic Ice-Beset Vessels Await Arrival of US Icebreaker
The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter 'Polar Star' is responding to a request from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) to assist the Russian-flagged passenger expedition ship 'Akademik Shokalskiy' and the Chinese-flagged icebreaker 'Xue Long' (which had earlier taken off the passengers from the 'Shokalsky' before becoming beset herself). The Polar Star leaves Sydney today after taking on supplies prior to its voyage to Antarctica, and it is anticipated it will take approximately seven days for the US Coast Guard Cutter to reach Commonwealth Bay, depending upon weather and ice conditions.
