SEATTLE — On Thursday, the crew aboard the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy (WAGB 20) returned home after completing a 73-day Arctic deployment that began on Oct. 1.
Healy (WAGB 20) is a 420-foot polar icebreaker capable of providing over 4,200 square feet of scientific laboratory space for up to 50 scientists and is capable of breaking 4.5 feet of ice.
This is the Coast Guard’s only icebreaker specifically designed to support Arctic research.
“Healy’s Arctic West Fall deployment demonstrates the agility and dedication of the crew,” said Healy’s Commanding Officer Capt. Michele Schallip. “In addition to contributing to navigation safety and support of scientific research, our deployment exercised the broad array of Coast Guard missions we conduct in the Arctic.”
During the first phase of the deployment, the crews worked with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. National Science Foundation and the University of New Hampshire in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas north of Alaska.
The crew completed bouy placements and surveyed uncharted waters along a portion of the Alaskan Arctic Coast Port Access Route Study (AACPARS) corridor.
During this phase of the deployment, the USCG said they discovered a ‘volcano-like’ underwater feature approximately 1,600 meters below the surface at its shallowest depth.
During the second phase, the crew hosted 10 postdoctoral researchers with their junior faculty members from various institutions with sea-floor mapping, water and sediment collections. This phase gave early career polar scientists hands-on experience at sea.
In the final phase, the Healy and its crew completed many missions and training exercises which included search-and-rescue drills as part of readiness improvement.
The crew also navigated the Bering Strait and into Russian territorial seas to safeguard free and open navigation in the Arctic region.
During the deployment, the Healy assisted with search-and-rescue efforts of the fishing boat Wind Walker in Alaska.
The Healy and its crew were welcomed by families holding “Welcome Home” signs and big smiles all around just in time for Christmas.
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