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Clearing the Decks

December 16, 2017

Clearing ice from the decks of the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker Healy was a regular task for ship’s crew during a 2011 cruise into the Arctic. WHOI biologist Carin Ashjian led the first research cruise ever conducted in the Chukchi Sea during winter, when the sun appears for only a few hours a day. Wintertime wind speeds topped 70 miles per hour, and the wind chill dipped to -40° F, causing water-swept decks to freeze. Ashjian and colleagues investigated polar ocean conditions and marine life in early winter. Previously, scientists had studied the region during winter only from ice camps or from ships purposely frozen into the ice. (Photo by Carin Ashjian, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)