Read Now : A journey to the top of the earth – Thrilling Voyage to the North Pole – Part – 1
Read Now : An Adventurous and thrilling Voyage to the North Pole : Part – 2
That night the ship began to sail through the thick ice. Snow-covered ice sheet with no cracks on all four sides. (This is known as the ARCTIC OCEAN CAP) We had not even reached half the distance we had to travel. Then the speed of the ship was less than 8 nautical miles. The ship continued its voyage, ruthlessly tearing and crushing the ice. Huge ice sheets were rising on both sides of the ship. Its vibration can be clearly seen inside the ship. Sometimes the ship shook well and shook. The situation was the same the next morning. Only snow on all four sides. He spent time filming scenes of the ship moving through the ice. Unable to stand for extra time due to extreme cold and wind outside. By noon the wind had subsided. The announcement came that the opportunity for helicopter riding was ready. The helicopter can carry up to five people. Each group will get a 15 minute ride.
The ship will continue its voyage. This is when the helicopter TAKE OFF and LAND. It was our turn, and we got the chance in the back seat. The pilot took off the helicopter with the ease of cycling very simply. The helicopter circled around the ship 4 times. 2 times close and 2 times too far. The view of the ship tearing through the ice can be very beautiful. The pictures were taken in the allotted time. 15 minutes passed like 15 seconds. The helicopter returned. The ship landed very quickly without any difficulty at the specified location.
That afternoon the ship’s CHIEF ENGINEER gave us a very detailed description of the ship and its operations, as well as the opportunity to see the ship’s engine room and other functions. It is the largest and most powerful ICE BREAKER ship in the world. It became fully operational in 2007. The ship was named “50 LET POBEDDY” (“50 YEARS OF VICTORY” in ENGLISH) to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Nazi conquest of Germany during World War II. The ship is 159 meters long, 30 meters wide and 45 meters high and has a draft of 11 meters. (The size of the bottom part of the ship which is under water)., The outer shell of the ship is made of double chambers with 54 mm thick steel sheets. Outer cover with stainless steel. The ship is propelled by three giant propellers (the 3 SPARE propeller is housed on the deck of the ship, with the ability to change propellers at sea in the event of an emergency, and the ship is manned by divers.)
The ship weighs 25,000 tons. It is powered by two nuclear reactors that use uranium as fuel. The ship has a power of 74,000 HORSE POWER and can sail through ice up to 5 meters thick. Its ice class rating is “LL-1”. (LL-1 has the highest possible rating) Maximum speed 20 nautical miles. The maximum fuel consumption per day is 200 grams. So once refueled, it is only 5 years later that you have to think about fuel. We got very clear answers to all the questions. Both reactors are always operational. But the ship does not need to use more than 70% of the maximum power of both reactors. (One reactor was 60% operational and the other 40% operational, even as we made our way through the thickest ice sheets). We also received information about the ship’s TURBINES, GENERATOR, and seawater purifying DE-SALINATOR. All of these were on more than one ship. (The ship is built and operated in such a way that one can navigate the other and safely return to port, even if one is out of order.)
The ship will still have all the facilities needed to stay at sea for 4 months. Due to the National Security Policy, we have been able to access all the sites except the nuclear reactor and get a first-hand understanding of the activities. Almost all the mechanical parts are on the lower deck of the ship i.e. below sea level.
3-4 times during the journey the polar bears had come back with the vision. D The next morning the ship encountered its most critical condition. At the confluence of large ice sheets more than 2.5 m thick, the ship was often unable to move forward. Then the ship had to retreat and then move forward again with more force or change direction. (Large ice sheets collide with each other due to strong winds in the opposite direction, forming a very strong joint, known as the “PRESSURE RIDGES”.) Everyone except the Chinese on the ship had become like a family. (The Chinese are still like that, they only associate with their people.) Like anywhere else in the world, BAR was the busiest place on the ship. There was a ‘LIVE BAND’ and a song every day to match. Because I was decent, I didn’t go to spend every day there until the bar closed.
That night the announcement came that “89 degrees north” had passed and only “one degree” i.e. 60 nautical miles. The ship’s current speed was 6-8 nautical miles. Depending on the direction of the wind and the thickness of the ice sheets, the point can reach 90 degrees north at any time during the next 12 hours. But it was not easy and many times before the ship was not able to reach the full 90’00’000 N point, and asked for details. The GPS system installed on the ship is MILITARY GRADE. These are the most sensitive navigation tools. The ship is equipped with the American system GPS and the Russian system GLONASS. The maximum area of the point 90’00’000 is only 1 to 2 cm. The ship’s GPS point is set to the ship’s “BOW HEAD”. (Where the flag is on the front of the ship.) – The ice in the Arctic Ocean as we sail continues to move according to the wind. The ship tore through the ice and through the middle of it. The calculation required to reach the point 90’00’000 ‘N and the control of the ship are all done as’ MANUAL’. If the wind speed or the movement of the ice fluctuates, the ship ‘BOW HEAD’ will lose 90’00’000 points, and once the point is lost, it will have to go backwards and do the calculations again.
On the morning of June 20, it was learned that there was still a long way to go and that the ship had to slow down due to strong winds and 3 m thick layers of ice. By noon we were notified that we would arrive within the next 30 minutes. We walked to the deck of the ship. I turned on my mobile and was checking COORDINATES in its GPS application. (Now we need to know if they are going to catch us !!). Not only me but a number of travelers were also checking the COORDINATES with various GPS devices. 50 meters away, the announcement came from the ship.(Continues….)
