''Kapitan Khlebnikov'' (russian: Капита́н Хле́бников, ) is a Russian (formerly

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

) icebreaker. The vessel now operates as a

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as "s ...

offering excursions to the

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...

and

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

History

The ''Kapitan Khlebnikov'' was completed in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

in 1981 as one of four s. She was refitted in 1990 as a tour ship and was the first ship to circumnavigate Antarctica with passengers in 1996–97. In February 2006 the ''Kapitan Khlebnikov'' reached the Bay of Whales in the Antarctic, reaching 78° 40.871' south and equalling the record set by

Roald Amundsen Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amundsen bega ...

in the in 1911.

Construction and layout

A polar-class icebreaker, combining power and technology with creature comforts, ''Kapitan Khlebnikov'' was originally designed for the rigors of the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...

. The vessel has twin decks with superstructure and engine room in the middle, an icebreaker bow and transom stern. The stern region is cushioned to allow for the close towing of other vessels when helping them through the ice. Passenger accommodation is in 54 cabins and suites, with 2 dining rooms, a lounge and bar. Facilities include a heated indoor swimming pool, exercise room and sauna, theatre-style auditorium and shop. The library has a collection of polar-themed books. The double hull has water ballast between, with pumps that can move ballast water at up to 74 tonnes a minute to aid ice breaking. The hull thickness is at the ice skirt and elsewhere. Friction between the ship and the ice is reduced by a polymer-paint coating at the level of the ice skirt. An air bubbling system helps ice breaking. Air can be forced under pressure from above the keel from the bow to halfway down the ship.

Service

2007 Snow-Hill-Island Luyten-De-Hauwere-Explorers-02

In addition to charters for scientific missions, and for supplying mines and other resource exploitation industries, the vessel is chartered for adventure cruises.

Stuck in the ice

In November 2009, the vessel was trapped in Antarctic ice in a bay near to Snow Hill Island. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' reports that 101 passengers, mainly

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

citizens, were among the 184 trapped ship's complement. The excursion was called the "Emperor Penguin Safari", and was arranged by an

adventure travel Adventure travel is a type of niche tourism, involving exploration or travel with a certain degree of risk (real or perceived), and which may require special skills and physical exertion. In the United States, adventure tourism has grown in r ...

firm called Exodus. Three of the UK passengers were a ''

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

'' film crew, working on a documentary, entitled ''

Frozen Planet ''Frozen Planet'' is a 2011 British nature documentary series, co-produced by the BBC and The Open University. It was filmed by the BBC Natural History Unit. The production team, which includes executive producer Alastair Fothergill and series p ...

''. The ship was placed a few days behind schedule but not endangered.

References

External links

*
General information on the Kapitan Khlebnikov at Quark Expeditions
*{{Cite news , last=Hughes , first=Peter , date=10 February 2007 , title=''The last continent'' , url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/02/10/stant10.xml&page=1 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080219070634/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/02/10/stant10.xml&page=1 , archive-date=19 February 2008 , access-date=23 February 2007 , publisher=

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...