Korean Container Ship to Embark on Arctic Route in One Day...What Araon Found First

Thin Ice Less Than 1 Meter Thick

Expansion of "Open Water" Further South

One day before the trial voyage of a Korean container ship through the Arctic route, the icebreaking research vessel Araon was the first to check the Arctic "ice road." The thickness of the sea ice in the Chukchi Sea, which serves as the gateway to the Arctic Ocean, was mostly under 1 meter and relatively thin. In the East Siberian Sea, open water—areas without ice—was observed to be rapidly expanding further south.

On August 21, the Korea Polar Research Institute publicly released sea ice observation data collected by Araon in the Chukchi and East Siberian Seas since last month.

A site in the southern East Siberian Sea photographed from the Araon ship. The location of the photo is latitude 76 degrees 8.5978 minutes, longitude 178 degrees 45.9867 minutes. The photo was taken on the 10th at 02:00 (Coordinated Universal Time, UTC). Front view of the Araon ship (westward). Provided by the Korea Polar Research Institute.

After departing from Gwangyang Port in July, Araon spent about a month surveying the Chukchi and East Siberian Seas—the first gateways from the Pacific Ocean into the Arctic—successively, observing sea ice and the marine environment.

The on-site observations showed that sea ice was widely distributed in polar regions such as the Chukchi Sea and the northern East Siberian Sea, but the ice was relatively thin. The further south Araon traveled along the East Siberian Sea, the faster the sea ice coverage decreased.

The thickness of sea ice observed in the northern Chukchi Sea at the end of July was mostly estimated to be less than 1 meter. Even in mid-August, most of the ice observed was thin and featured well-developed melt ponds—pools of water formed on the ice surface as it melts.

In particular, by August 9, as Araon reached around latitude 75 degrees north in the East Siberian Sea, the frequency with which the vessel needed to break through ice had decreased significantly due to reduced sea ice. As Araon continued further south, the open water—areas free of ice—continued to expand.

Verifying 'ice thickness' invisible to satellites...Utilizing the results for container ship operations

This expedition was the first field survey for the "SAFE-SEA" project, a collaborative effort by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Korea Polar Research Institute aimed at developing real-world measurement-based integrated prediction technologies for Arctic route operations.

Site in the southern East Siberian Sea photographed from the Araon ship. The shooting location is at latitude 76° 8.5978', longitude 178° 45.9867', and the shooting date was 02:00 UTC on the 10th. Rear side of the Araon ship (east direction). Provided by Korea Polar Research Institute.

While the general distribution of Arctic sea ice can be monitored by satellite, there are limits to accurately determining details directly affecting ship navigation, such as the actual thickness of the ice or the extent to which it has melted. The Korea Polar Research Institute was able to verify the true thickness, the melt state, and the navigational conditions as experienced by vessels, through Araon's on-site observations.

The information collected during this mission is expected to be applied to the trial use of the Arctic route by the 2,758-TEU class container vessel Panstar Acro, which is scheduled to depart from Busan New Port on August 22.

Jin Kyung, head of the Arctic Route Task Force at the Korea Polar Research Institute, stated, "Satellite images offer a broad view of the Arctic, but have accuracy limitations. The information confirmed firsthand by Araon will be helpful for the safe operation of our container ships."

Shin Hyeongcheol, Director of the Korea Polar Research Institute, commented, "The research and expertise accumulated by Araon over 17 years of navigating the Arctic have become assets of information for the future of our country. We will continue to strengthen our on-site observation and forecasting capabilities in order to support the safe opening of the Arctic route."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.