Australian Icebreaker Refloated in Antarctica

Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis was refloated on Friday, two days after running aground in Antarctica while on a mission to resupply the Mawson Station, Australian Broadcasting Corp reported.

The ship broke free of its moorings during a blizzard on Wednesday morning.

None of the 67 expeditioners and crew on board on the ship, owned by P&O Maritime Services, were injured, according to the Australian Antarctic Division.

"Expeditioners on board the Aurora Australis have been successfully transferred by barge to Mawson Station," it said.

The Aurora Australis departed Australia's Tasmania island in early January to conduct research on an undersea geological formation.

Ships traveling to and from Antarctica often face risky conditions. The Aurora Australis itself came to the rescue of Russian ship Akademik Shokalskiy and its 52-member crew in 2014.

Mawson Station is one of three Australian bases in the Australian Antarctic Territory of East Antarctica.

Reporting by James Regan