Icebreaker “Noosfera” delivered expedition and cargo to British Rothera Station for the first time (photo)

This season, the Ukrainian icebreaker Noosfera delivered an expedition and cargo to the largest British Antarctic station, Rothera, for the first time.

This took place as part of the expansion of cooperation between the National Antarctic Research Center and the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), the National Antarctic Research Center reported.

Rothera is located south of Vernadskyi, the duration of the ship’s passage between the stations is one day. The British base operates year-round, with two types of expeditions operating there – winter and seasonal.

Noosphere delivered seven future winterers to the station and picked up 35 specialists from the season and the previous year’s team.

BAS has its own modern ship Sir David Attenborough. It serves all British polar stations (both Arctic and Antarctic), and also provides various ocean research. Given the significant distances between the stations, BAS involves ships of polar neighbors in servicing some of them so as not to move Attenborough thousands of kilometers.

For Ukraine, the logistical cooperation between BAS and the National Antarctic Centre is important, as it strengthens relations between our country and the UK, demonstrates the value of sharing polar infrastructure and mutual support in Antarctica, the National Antarctic Centre noted.

Oliver Dark, Director of Polar Operations, Engineering and Infrastructure at BAS, said: “This cooperation highlights the strength of international partnerships in Antarctica. By working closely with the National Antarctic Centre, we are increasing resilience, reducing our environmental impact through shared logistics, and ensuring the safe and efficient continuation of the important scientific and operational work of our polar teams.”

Ukrainian and British scientists have also conducted new joint research from aboard the Noosfera. In collaboration with the POLOMINTS international project team, they have been making oceanographic measurements and taking seawater samples. The results of these studies will be of great importance for understanding the impact of climate change on coastal Antarctica.

USM previously reported that the icebreaker “Noosfera” will deliver polar explorers from Antarctica to Chile.