Den stora tråden om global uppvärmning/växthuseffekten

/.../The commissioning of the powerful icebreaking vessels comes as severe sea ice conditions have taken shippers by surprise. There are now about 20 vessels that either are stuck or struggling to make it across the icy waters. Among them is the UHL Vision that over the last days has been isolated in the waters north of the New Siberian Islands, and the bulk carriers Golden Suek, Golden Pearl, Nordic Quinngua and Nordic Nuluujaak that are located east of that same archipelago.

In the area is also oil tanker Vladimir Rusanov, as well as cargo vessels Selenga and Finnish ship Kumpula, all of which are at west-bound escort by nuclear icebreaker Vaigach.

Meanwhile, in the port of Pevek are six vessels that also are likely to need assistance to make in out from the area.

Over the past years, ice conditions in late October and early November have allowed extensive shipping along the vast Russian Arctic coast. This year, however, large parts of the remote Arctic waters were already covered by sea ice by late October. And the ice is quickly getting thicker and harder to navigate. Judging from ice maps provided by the Russian Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, there is now an ice layer across most of the Laptev Sea and East Siberian Sea that is up to 30 centimeters thick. And in the strait separating the mainland from Wrangel Island holds multi-year-old ice more than a meter thick.