see also: nabos.iarc.uaf.edu
The NABOS cruise concluded on October 13th with their arrival in Kirkenes, Norway. Everyone is fine but they experienced heavy weather between Longyearbyen and Kirkenes. The second part of the cruise had to be canceled due to weather and sea ice conditions but they had a very successful cruise on the first part.
Check back in a few days for a new photo gallery showing the voyage.
The ship left Longyearbyen this morning for Kirkenes, Norway. After assessing ice charts and weather reports in the mooring area, the decision was made to cancel the second part of the NABOS expedition and conclude operations in Kirkenes. They will be traveling through some rough weather on the way across the Barent’s Sea but forecasts suggest that it is will not be as bad as what they encountered previously. They expect to arrive in Kirkenes in 2-3 days.
The Viktor Buynitsky made it into port at Longyearbyen, Svalbard on October 9th. They are studying the ice conditions and weather forecasts to plan the best strategy for continuing the second half of the cruise.
see also: nabos.iarc.uaf.edu
October 8:
The ship has cleared the icy waters to the North of East Spitsbergen (”Nordaustlandet”) and are now proceeding through ice-free water toward Longyearbyen. The wind is at their back and the ship is free of the icing that they had to remove near Franz Josef Land.
The expected arrival time in Longyearbyen is 4pm Tuesday the 9th where they will take on more fuel, provisions and equipment for the second leg of the cruise in the Barent’s Sea.
October 7:
The Viktor Buynitsky is headed toward Longyearbyen, Svalbard. They were able to remove the thick ice that was covering the winches and ship during their sheltering near Franz Josef Land. Using satellite sea-ice maps, they defined a narrow ice-free strip between Svalbard and the ice edge in an attempt to reach the moorings to the northeast of Svalbard, however, the real ice conditions were up to 50-80% coverage with chunks of mulit-year ice. So now the ship is trying to find her way between the ice and moving slowly westward.
see also: nabos.iarc.uaf.edu
The cruise lost approximately two days due to heavy weather but they expect to be underway again as soon as they remove the ice from the winches. During this process, they are sheltering behind Franz Josef Land. They will go directly to Longyearbyen after the delay and plan on arriving on October 8 or 9. All are well.
see also: nabos.iarc.uaf.edu
The latest news from the NABOS cruise is that they are steaming across the Kara Sea towards the shelter of Franz Josef Land. Progress has slowed to around 2 knots, as they have been encountering heavy weather and seas of 6-7 meters for the past 3 days. They expect that it will take a few more days to reach Franz Josef Land so their expected arrival at Longyearbyen will be delayed.
This stormy weather is typical in the Kara Sea at this time of year. The Kara Sea is relatively shallow with a mean depth of 110m, which can cause steep waves to form.
They report that everyone is doing alright.
It is too early yet to predict what this delay means for the planned stations and mooring recovery work on the eastern side of Svalbard. These are stations that were slated to be worked on their way into port.
see also: nabos.iarc.uaf.edu
The first leg of the mission was successfully accomplished. The NABOS cruise concluded research over the Siberian continental margin. During the thirteen days of intensive measurements, they were able to carry out 75 oceanographic stations, recovered and deployed five moorings and all scheduled stations were completed.
Tonight an atomic icebreaker will convoy the Viktor Buynitsky through the ice bridge in the western Laptev Sea and towards the free water of Vilkitsky Strait. The port call to Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen is scheduled to take place on October 7-8.
