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Article: SOMETIMES THE ICE BITES THE SHIP BACK.(NEWS)
- Article from:
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer
- Article date:
- January 3, 2000
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2000 Seattle Post-Intelligencer. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of the Dialog Corporation by Gale Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The turning basin is where the ship sits, silently hurting from the beatings.
The basin is a half-mile or so of curved channel cut from the 7-foot-thick ice so that weaker ships than Polar Star can leave McMurdo Sound bow-first.
Lately, though, the thick ice has been hitting back. It slams against the icebreaker's hull. It mills through the propellers. It punishes moving parts and steel plate.
The damage has been growing exponentially - not unexpected, but troublesome. Polar Star cut miles its first day in the thick ice before the engines began acting up. The second day was mostly spent fixing the engines, but there was still serious cutting. ...