The research expedition vessel “Akademik Treshnikov” will sail to the high latitudes of the Arctic Ocean at the end of July 2023. The main task of the expedition is shift rotation of the members at the drifting polar station "North Pole – 41", delivery of scientific equipment and food.
According to the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI), at the moment the drifting station is located north of the Svalbard archipelago, in the area of 85°N. In nine months the polar expedition has moved almost 1,200 km from the starting point in the area of the Novosibirsk Islands, having traveled a distance of more than 2,500 km.
During the free drift, the station is moving from the Novosibirsk Islands through the polar region towards the North European basin of the Atlantic Ocean. After entering the ice-free waters of the Greenland Sea, the “North Pole” ice-resistant platform with polar explorers on board will return to Murmansk.
The “North Pole” ice-resistant self-propelled platform (IRP) is a unique research expedition vessel with the functionality of a research center that is designed for year-round expeditions in the high latitudes of the Arctic Ocean. The vessel is designed to conduct geological, acoustic, geophysical, and oceanographic studies and is capable of passing through the ice without the involvement of an icebreaker. The IRP is capable of providing comfortable and safe working and living conditions for 14 crew members and 34 scientific personnel at temperatures overboard of up to -50 °C.
“The drift of the polar station ‘North Pole – 41’ is relatively fast, but, according to our calculations, the expedition will be able to work in the ice for several more months,” said Aleksandr Makarov, director of AARI. “Therefore, it was decided to equip the station with additional equipment and expand the research program. The crew of the ice-resistant platform will be replaced, but the main team of scientists will continue to work. Scientific specialists receive unique data about the natural environment of the Arctic region and want to make the most of the opportunities that the platform gives them.”
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In addition to the main goal, a number of related tasks will be solved during the expedition. In particular, the “Akademik Treshnikov” will deliver scientific specialists to the Franz Josef Land archipelago to study permafrost. The route of the research expedition vessel will run through Murmansk, from where in the first days of August it will go in the direction of the Franz Josef Land archipelago, and it will approach the drifting station "North Pole - 41" at the beginning of the second decade of August, after which it will return to the port of St. Petersburg.