The icebreaker Noosfera, the flagship of Ukraine's polar research fleet, left Cape Town (South Africa) for the Antarctic on 17 November 2023. This marked the beginning of the third Antarctic season for the Ukrainian-flagged vessel.
The National Antarctic Scientific Center announced this in a statement, the CFTS portal reports.
Like last year, the current expedition of the icebreaker is a joint Ukrainian-Polish expedition. It is partly financed by the Polish Antarctic Program. Therefore, the icebreaker will first go to the Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station on King George Island. It will deliver a team of polar researchers and cargo to the station.
The ship will then proceed to the Vernadsky Research Base (the Ukrainian Antarctic station). It will also deliver cargo and a seasonal expedition team to Vernadsky Research Base. Most of the members of the expedition team are technical experts tasked with completing the station's modernization, which began before the full-scale war in Ukraine.
"This season, we plan to replace the hot and cold water supply system, reconstruct the berth, complete the grounding of all buildings at the station, and perform several other urgent works," the statement said.
The Noosfera is expected to reach Antarctica in the first ten days of December this year.
According to the statement, a lot of work has been done to maintain the icebreaker and improve its operation in the new Antarctic season. The work includes scheduled repairs and maintenance of the ship's machinery and systems in the dry dock, overhaul of the ship's power plants, and modification of the cooling system of the ship's power plants.
In addition, a Ukrainian-made fuel cavitation module was installed. "It is used to improve the quality of fuel cleaning, reduce fuel consumption, and extend engine life. In addition, the ship was equipped with new navigation and other equipment, including high-powered searchlights, which will significantly improve its adaptability to work in difficult ice conditions," the National Antarctic Scientific Center said.
