The Polar Star pulled into port in Seattle on March 11. The 399-foot icebreaker is the only ship in U.S. service capable of clearing a path through the Antarctic ice to escort three refuel and resupply ships to McMurdo Station during Operation Deep Freeze. ________. Mariners Weather Log25 (Nov-Dec 1981), pp. Currently, the service has two icebreakers, heavy icebreaker USCGC Polar Star (WAGB-10), commissioned in 1976, and medium icebreaker USCGC Healy (WAGB-20) … Adams, Michael R. "Coast Guard Breaks Ice with New 140-Foot Tugs." Polar-class icebreakers USCGC Polar Star (WAGB-10), USCGC Polar Sea (WAGB-11) are heavy icebreakers operated by the United States Coast Guard (USCG). The Seattle-based icebreaker Polar Star has returned from a mission to explore the Arctic during the winter months. The mission was a serious test of the capabilities of the 45-year-old, 399-foot Polar Star with challenges that included generating enough heat to keep the ship warm. You may have seen pictures of the Polar Star, but this video gives you a more intimate look at her from inside.. The Navy is the first military service to reveal what leaders will cover during the military's upcoming stand-downs. The Arctic winter ice was also was very hard. Researchers deployed buoys that will transmit information about ice floes, and the crew aided research to develop a better understanding of the hydrology of the Chukchi Sea. The crew aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star, a 399-foot Heavy Icebreaker pull into Coast Guard Base Seattle, March 11, 2019. (U.S. Coast Guard photo/Amanda Norcross) 21 Feb 2021 The vessel in recent years has had mishaps and maintenance problems, including a 2019 fire that damaged a shipboard incinerator and a leaking shaft repaired with the aid of a scuba diver. With violence spiking, Afghanistan’s warring sides have returned to the negotiation table. “The US hasn't had an asset in the Arctic in the winter in almost 40 years.”, RELATED: Coast Guard icebreaker Polar Star departs Seattle for important Arctic mission. The Polar Star pulled into port in Seattle on March 11. The current position of CG POLAR STAR is at North America West Coast (coordinates 48.13775 N / 123.01573 W) reported 4 mins ago by AIS. The crew … “Seeing Northern Lights was really cool, but the stars were magnificent, indescribable, it was breathtaking to see,” Petty Officer First Class Cynthia Oldham said. USCGC POLAR STAR (WAGB 10) Seattle, WA. “The things we learned on this trip are going to inform Coast Guard investments in the future,” Capt. "Polar Star's winter Arctic deployment has served to better understand and prepare for the challenges of operating in such a harsh and unforgiving environment," Woityra said in a statement released by the Coast Guard. 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The isolation of the cruise was heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevented shore leaves at Alaska ports during 78 days of the cruise. "A Brief History of U.S. Coast Guard Icebreakers." This caretaker status required a reduced crew of 44 to keep the ship ready for a possible return to the ice. The view from aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) while the cutter is at anchor in Taylor Bay, Alaska, Thursday, February 11, 2021. “My kids are in 5th and 6th grade and they're doing the remote schooling, so he's been handling everything at home. The vessel left Seattle in early December and traveled through the Gulf of Alaska, the Bering Sea and then through the thick ice of the Chukchi Sea. Mariners Weather Log20, No. – in 2004-2005 (ODF 2005), the Russian icebreaker Krasin was assisting USCGC Polar Star while USCGC Polar Sea had to remain at the dry dock – in 2005-2006 (ODF 2006), Krasin attempted break-in alone but threw a blade which couldn’t be replaced; USCGC Polar Star was hastily deployed from Seattle (and afterwards placed in caretaker status) “We made it as far as 72 degrees North, which is a winter record for latitude. The forty-two year old ship returned from Operation Deep Freeze 2018, a voyage to resupply the McMurdo Antarctic research center on […] Naval InstituteProceedings 95 (Feb 1979), pp. “We had terrific interactions with Russian border guards. The Polar Star headed north with researchers from an Army Corps of Engineers cold weather laboratory, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the University of Washington and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. No other U.S. surface ship has ever been that far north in the winter.”. 386-389. The 45-year-old heavy icebreaker is nearing the end of a months-long patrol to project power and support national security objectives throughout Alaskan waters and into the Arctic. So I'm grateful for his support.”. In the Chukchi Sea, the Polar Star rammed — again and again — through a heavy blanket of ice. I wrote a story recently about this year’s new mission for the USCG Polar Star to the Arctic, instead of to Antarctica. The crew now has three weeks free of ship duties. Article by: Peter Ong The United States Coast Guard’s only heavy operational Polar-class icebreaker, Polar Star, completed its annual scheduled refit at Mare Island, Vallejo, California, in a maintenance period riddled with challenges. This article is written by Hal Bernton from Seattle Times and was legally licensed via the Tribune Content Agency through the Industry Dive publisher network. As late as August, the 134 full-time crew were still preparing for their traditional role. USCGC Polar Sea (WAGB-11) is a United States Coast Guard heavy icebreaker.Commissioned on 23 February 1977, the ship was built by Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Company of Seattle along with her sister ship, Polar Star.Her home port is Seattle, Washington. Isolation on the boat kept them safe from COVID, but it meant sacrifices for their loved ones back home. The captain said 99% of the crew plan to get vaccinated. The Coast Guard today awarded an indefinite quantity, indefinite delivery contract to Mare Island Dry Dock LLC of Vallejo, California, for the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star service life extension project (SLEP), as part of the In-Service Vessel Sustainment program. Switching Poles, USCG's Heavy Icebreaker Heads North for the Winter Polar Star in Seattle's harbor (USCG file image) By The Maritime Executive 10-29-2020 07:42:57 Then they will bring the Polar Star down to California for maintenance work in preparation for next year's cruise, which is expected to be a return to Antarctica. The Polar Star typically heads south to assist in the summer resupply of the McMurdo Station on Ross Island, close to the Antarctic continent. The crew encountered dense, shifting sea ice, daylong darkness and wind chills that plunged to 50 degrees below zero. Black Restaurant Week comes to the Pacific Northwest, Ferndale residents fight through plant closure and COVID-19 pandemic, Mariners CEO Kevin Mather resigns after fallout from controversial speech, Jordan Morris tears left ACL will return to U.S. for surgery, Teachers and staff in Auburn schools ready for rapid COVID testing pilot program, LIST: Mass COVID-19 vaccine sites in western Washington, Coast Guard icebreaker Polar Star departs Seattle for important Arctic mission, Seattle-based Coast Guard icebreaker preparing for unusual Arctic journey, Seattle icebreaker Polar Star assigned to Arctic instead of Antarctic this year. "I was shocked by how hard and ridge and tough it was totally foreign to me," said Woityra, who noted that the noise of the ice-breaking was a constant cacophony that made sleep elusive despite the perpetual night. The crew will now get a few weeks off and then they will take the boat down to San Diego and begin dry dock work to get ready for the next mission. 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