Icebreaker thwarted by ... ice
The Chinese icebreaker got within 6 nautical miles of the 74 passengers
stranded an expedition vessel, but the Antarctic ice was too thick to
conquer. Now, an Australian icebreaker is seeing if it can do any
better.
FULL STORY
So close, yet so far: Rescue boat waits for better weather 28 miles out.
updated 1:41 PM EST, Sun December 29, 2013
Trapped ship makes evacuation plans
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- A Chinese ship can't break the ice, but is staying nearby in case of helicopter evacuations
- An Australian icebreaker is now 28 nautical miles away waiting for weather to clear
- That ship can break ice about 1.35 meters deep, but the ice may be at least 2 meters thick
- The research vessel is carrying 74 tourists and scientists studying climate change
An Australian icebreaker
ship Aurora Australis is 28 nautical miles away from the Russian-flagged
Akademik Shokalskiy and is waiting for snow showers to pass, according
to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
The Aurora Australis needs better visibility before trying to break through the ice and reach the stranded vessel.
This attempt follows the
Chinese icebreaker Xue Long, or Snow Dragon, which was just six nautical
miles away from the trapped vessel when it couldn't get any closer due
to unusually thick ice.
The Snow Dragon went back
to open water but remains in the area to provide support, said Andrea
Hayward-Maher, spokeswoman for the AMSA. The Chinese ship has a
helicopter on board that could assist in evacuation.
The plan is to see
whether the Aurora Australis can break through the ice further than the
Chinese ship could. If not passengers will have to get ready for an
evacuation by helicopter.
"The aerial transfer of passengers on board may be a possibility," Hayward-Maher said.
A French icebreaker was
also en route to assist, but AMSA called off that vessel's mission
Saturday after it became clear that ship wouldn't get farther than the
Chinese boat. Also, the French and Chinese ships can break ice only
about 1 meter thick, where as the Australian ship can pierce through
floe about 1.35 meters thick.
"Some reports say that
the ice is at least 2 meters deep. It's a possibility that the Aurora
Australis might not be able to break through that type of ice,"
Hayward-Maher said.
Extreme conditions
The rescue icebreakers
were battling the planet's coldest environment while trying to reach the
Akademik Shokalskiy ship, whose 74 researchers, crew and tourists
remained in good condition despite being at a frozen standstill since
Monday.
Ship stuck in Antarctica awaits rescue
Icebreaker gets stuck; rescue stalled
The ship is carrying scientists and passengers led by expedition leader Chris Tunrey, an Australian professor of climate change.
"The vessel is fine, it's safe and everyone on board is very well," Turney said. "Morale is really high."
The ship got stuck in the ice 15 days after setting out on the second leg of its research trip.
According to Turney, a
professor at the University of New South Wales, the ship was surrounded
by ice up to nearly 10 feet (3 meters) thick. It was about 100 nautical
miles east of the French base Dumont D'Urville, about 1,500 nautical
miles south of Hobart, Tasmania.
On Christmas morning, the ship sent a satellite distress signal after conditions failed to clear.
The crew had a "great
Christmas" despite their situation, Turney told CNN. He said crew
members have used the delay to get more work done.
"We've just kept the team busy," he said.
The expedition is trying
to update scientific measurements taken by an Australian expedition led
by Douglas Mawson that set out in 1911.
The expedition to gauge the effects of climate change on the region began
November 27. The second and current leg of the trip started December 8
and was scheduled to conclude with a return to New Zealand on January 4.
Turney said the ship should still be back in New Zealand on time.
CNN's Naik Bharati, Isa Soares, Sara Mazloumsaki and Brian Walker contributed to this report.
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