RV ''Polarstern'' (meaning pole star) is a German research icebreaker of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in Bremerhaven, Germany. ''Polarstern'' was built by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft in Kiel and Nobiskrug in Rendsburg, was commissioned in 1982, and is mainly used for research in the Arctic and Antarctica. The ship has a length of 118 metres (387 feet) and is a double hull, double-hulled icebreaker. She is operational at temperatures as low as . ''Polarstern'' can break through ice thick at a speed of . Thicker ice of up to can be broken by ramming.

History

On 7 September 1991, ''Polarstern'', assisted by the Sweden, Swedish arctic icebreaker , reached the North Pole as the first conventional powered vessels. Both scientific parties and crew took oceanographic and geological samples and had a common tug of war and a association football, football game on an ice floe. In 2001, ''Polarstern'' together with reached the pole again. She returned for a third time on 22 August 2011. This time she reported the most frequently recurring ice thickness at compared with in 2001. On 2 March 2008, one of the vessel's helicopters crashed on a routine flight to the Antarctic Neumayer Station, Neumayer II base. The German pilot and a Dutch researcher were killed, and three other passengers were injured. On 17 October 2008, ''Polarstern'' was the first research ship ever to travel through both the Northeast Passage and the Northwest Passage in one cruise, thus circumnavigating the North Pole. The German government in 2015 issued a request for bids on the construction of a replacement for ''Polarstern'', but did not award a contract and eventually withdrew the request in early 2020 as it no longer covered current technological demands for a long-term, efficient and economic vessel. On 20 September 2019 ''Polarstern'' sailed from Tromsø, Norway, for a 12 to 14 month-long Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC Expedition, MOSAiC) expedition across the Arctic. She settled in an ice floe on 4 October 2019. The aim was drifting with this floe, passing the North pole and eventually reaching open water in the Fram Strait. While stuck in the ice in March 2020, a member of the aircraft team who had not yet joined the ship in the Arctic tested positive for COVID-19. This resulted in the entire aircraft team being placed in isolation in Germany and caused delays in the retrieval of scientific data from around the ship to provide context to the data taken aboard. After 389 days, this 2019 – 2020 arctic expedition successfully ended on 12 October 2020 when the research vessel safely returned to its home port of Bremerhaven, Germany.

A revised request for bids for a replacement, reflecting changes in technology since the first was issued, was expected, with ''Polarstern II'' possibly ordered in 2022 to enter service in 2026 or 2027. The new vessel could cost over €800m, and could include hybrid diesel-electric propulsion, integrated under-water robotic systems and several helicopter landing options.

Expeditions updates

Current listings of all cruises on board ''Polarstern'' as well as associated contents (e.g., tracklines, weekly reports, cruise reports, publications and data) are presented on the platform portal of the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) for Polar and Marine Research.Research platform portal of the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) for Polar and Marine Research
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In popular culture

The ship plays a central role in German musician Schiller (band), Schiller's 2010 album ''Atemlos (Schiller album), Atemlos'' (German language, German for ''breathless''). A track is titled after the ship. It is also featured in the DVD of the same title, showing the musician's expedition on the vessel.

Gallery

Polarstern arriving at Reykjavík.jpg, ''Polarstern'' near Reykjavík, Iceland Polarstern library hg.jpg, Library in the blue saloon

References

External links

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Current position of ''Polarstern''

List of all cruises with links to cruise reports and data

news article featuring ''Polarstern'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Polarstern Research vessels of Germany Exploration ships Bremerhaven 1982 ships Icebreakers of Germany Ships built in Kiel Ships built in Rendsburg Ships involved in the COVID-19 pandemic