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Radical New Icebreaker Will Travel Through the Ice Sideways

Posted by samzenpus on from the going-sideways dept.

cylonlover writes "Given that icebreakers clear a path for other ships by traveling through the ice head-on (or sometimes butt-on), then in order for one of them to clear a wider path, it would have to be wider and thus larger overall ... right? Well, Finland's Arctech Helsinki Shipyard is taking a different, more efficient approach. It's in the process of building an asymmetric-hulled icebreaker that can increase its frontal area, by making its way through the ice at an angle of up to 30 degrees."

7 of 62 comments (clear)

  1. I suppose... by benjfowler · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... you could call that:

    *puts on sunglasses*

    'lateral thinking'

  2. been working on it for some time by Trepidity · · Score: 5, Informative

    Fwiw, the Finns have been researching this idea for a while now; interesting to see it actually being built. Here is a 1999 paper [pdf] from one of Arctech Helsinki's parent companies studying the feasibility of such a design, which has some good information on the details.

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  3. So, by virgnarus · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Nautical drifting?

  4. Re:Waste of Time by FatLittleMonkey · · Score: 5, Funny

    Already done. That's why these icebreakers are so useful.

    By eliminating much of the multi-year ice, all they have to worry about is the thin smooth single-year ice that forms each winter; the stuff that icebreakers like. That greatly increases the chance of a viable shipping lane being breakable along its full length each year.

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  5. Icebreakers work from above by Teun · · Score: 4, Informative
    Conventional ice breaking is done by the weight of the ship, the shape of the bow allows them to slide on top of it and once far enough the ice underneath will break, doing this sideways will be rather nasty for the stomach of the sailors on board.

    Providing they have the horsepower it can be done in a relatively smooth way or they need to regularly back up for a new run onto the ice.

    The ship in the article is 'only' fit for up to 60 cm. in sideways and 100 cm. of ice in regular mode, not exactly a lot of obstruction when you consider the typical ice sheet north of Russia is between 1.2 and 2.5 m. thick.

    http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2012-09/russia-building-worlds-largest-nuclear-powered-icebreaker

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    1. Re:Icebreakers work from above by pijokela · · Score: 5, Informative

      It's meant for the Gulf of Finland near St. Petersburg. A PDF report at http://www.baltice.org/ shows that the thickest ice during 2011-2012 winter was 50cm.

      It's true that as Russia is more and more interested in exploiting the arctic sea, they will need bigger things.

    2. Re:Icebreakers work from above by dan828 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      You've never been for a ride on a "conventional" icebreaker, have you? The things are basically footballs(american) in the water. As a younger man, I was a deckhand on an ocean going icebreaker and did an arctic deployment. In rough seas we could take up to 90 degree rolls, though the biggest I saw was 67 degrees (fall in the north sea). Breaking pack ice in the arctic was like spending time on a randomly shifting roller coaster that occasionally slammed on the breaks and had to back up for another go. If you think this piddly little 30 degree lateral crabbing while breaking thin sea ice is going to be very bad, you just have no idea.