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Hop Scotch on Ice

November 8, 2017

In 1978, a team of Russian scientists including WHOI senior scientist Andrey Proshutinksy (third from the right) took to the sky in a single-engine Antonov-2 biplane to observe sea ice and ocean conditions across the Arctic. During the “jumping expedition” known as Expedition Sever, pilots had to tackle the tricky and dangerous feat of landing the plane on drifting pack ice every 100 to 150 kilometers so that scientists could observe and take measurements. (Photo courtesy of Andrey Proshutinsky, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)