How a New Russian Icebreaker Slices Sideways Through Frozen Seas

[unhappycamper]

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2014/01/icebreaker/



How a New Russian Icebreaker Slices Sideways Through Frozen Seas
By Biz Carson
01.31.14 1:40 PM

The Baltika isn’t adrift—it’s breaking ice. Debuting in the Gulf of Finland in early 2014, the Russian-owned ship will be the first to travel sideways through the frozen stuff. Although smaller than a normal icebreaker, its oblique angle of attack lets it carve a larger path—wide enough for commercial ships to follow. “You would conventionally need two icebreakers to make the same channel,” project manager Mika Willberg says. The vessel can even help with oil spills: The unique hull guides oily water into a hatch, where a skimmer tank separates the oil from the water. The Baltika can crack through ice about 2 feet thick, which makes it suitable for conditions in the Baltic Sea. The ship’s patent holder, Aker Arctic, has a larger ship in the works to cut trade routes through heavier Arctic ice.

Roll and Crush Instead of smashing ice head-on, the angled hull lets the ship roll over the ice and use its weight to do the cracking.



Ballast Inside, water and fuel are pumped between tanks so the ship doesn’t roll over.

Propulsion Three 360-degree thrusters let the ship navigate sideways to attack the ice at a 30-degree angle. Wide Swath The Baltika cuts a 160-foot path through ice, allowing tankers to follow in its wake.

[eppur_se_muova]

1. Joke's on them when all the ice is gone. nt

[Laelth]

2. Brilliant. k&r n/t

-Laelth

[freshwest]

3. Whoever's doing the manuevers must be VERY good. Like the oil containment plan, too. n/t

[Blue State Bandit]

4. Aker ASA is from Norway. Russia just got the first order filled.

They're probably building these in Oslo.

[Diclotican]

5. Blue State Bandit

Blue State Bandit

Not in Oslo - it have not been building any ships in Oslo since the early 1980s sadly enough - The big ship building factory Aker - who once was one of the biggest industry employer in Oslo, is long goon. The old building have been preserved - and now is a outdoor "mekka" with coffee houses - and rather expensive stores.. And have a lot of restaurants at the waterfront.. It is a nice place to be, when the summer is there - and you have the Norwegian summer at it best http://www.oslosurf.com/innhold/00000204.shtml

Most of the ship building activity in Norway, are not centered to the West Coast of Norway - where they have enough to work with the next couple of years - as many have ordered new ships in all sizes from Norwegian ship building factories

Diclotican

[Blue State Bandit]

6. They have a yard in Philly, among others.

But they keep offices in Oslo. You're talking about the Brygge. Saw pics at a keel laying a few years ago.

[Diclotican]

7. Blue State Bandit

Blue State Bandit

I think I would know - if they had a ship building factory, right in the middle of Oslo - myself are living 25 minutes with train outside of Oslo - and is frequently in the downtown area of the City... They do have offices in Oslo - Aker-Kværner is one of many big corporations who do have offices in Oslo

The Modern Aker brygge - is where the old ship building facility was until the early 1980s, where it was closed down - and was standing still for a long time - until they made plans - and made it true (with some bitching around it all, even though I'm to young to really remember it all) And today Aker brygge is one nice place to visit - and with apartments on the high end price tag vise - I would never be able to pay for a apartment there - and even if I did - I suspect I would not do it anyway...

It would be interesting to know where that keel was laying - as it have not been any ship building industry at the waterfront of Oslo for at lest 25 years now - the inner Oslo-fjord was rather polluted back in the days - and because of that - and also because the ships tended to be larger and larger - and the inner Oslo- fjord is rather limited it was deiced to stop building ships at Aker industry - today mostly known as Aker brygge... Who by the way - also have its name from Aker nes - who on top, the old royal castle was build - today, it is the Akershus Fortress and Castle. (The county around Oslo is also known as Akershus - as Oslo is its own County

But I would LOVE to know where you was seeing that keel - if it was laid in Oslo - as it have not been build a ship in the inner Oslo fjord almost as long as I have lived. And I would believe I would know - if the keel of a ship was build around the inner Oslo fjord in the last 30 years - I suspect it would have been in the news - specially as Aker ship building was closed down - by the mid 1980s (I believe the last ship was made in 1980, and because of no more orders, it was a strong downturn in ship building worldwide and specially in Norway - and a lot of old equipment it was deiced to stop building ships in the middle of Oslo. It was after all prime property estate - who after been cleaned up from a couple of centuries of ship building was made into somewhat of an oase in the downtown area of Oslo - it have a splendig sight to the old Akershus Fortress and Castle - who have been there since the 1370s.. Who by the way, even have a statue of one of your President - Franklin D. Roosevelt - who was personal friends of the royal familiy back in the days - Our Current King was learning to bike ride in the hallways of the White House when the crownprince familiy was guest of the US president in the 1940s... (It was when the germans occupied Norway)

Diclotican