SIU members played key roles in another successful iteration of Operation Deep Freeze (ODF), the annual resupply mission to McMurdo Station, Antarctica.
The Seafarers-crewed Ocean Gladiator (operated by Waterman) and Acadia Trader (U.S. Marine Management) earlier this year wrapped up their respective roles in ODF 2024.
As reported by the U.S. Transportation Command, ODF is a joint mission involving civilians and military personnel in support of the National Science Foundation (NSF), lead agency for the United States Antarctic Program. “Mission support consists of active duty, Guard and Reserve personnel from the U.S. Air Force, Navy, Army, and Coast Guard as well as Department of Defense civilians and attached non-DOD civilians,” the agency noted. “ODF operates from two primary locations situated at Christchurch, New Zealand and McMurdo Station, Antarctica. An MSC-chartered cargo ship and tanker have made the challenging voyage to Antarctica every year since the station and its resupply mission were established in 1955.”
SIU members have been part of the operation throughout its history.
For ODF 2024, the Ocean Gladiator started taking on cargo in Port Hueneme, California, in December, and eventually moored at the McMurdo ice-pier in late January. Shortly after arriving, the crew and members of Navy Cargo Handling Battalion ONE began the offload of 407 pieces of cargo, consisting of containers filled with mechanical parts, vehicles, construction materials, office supplies and electronics equipment, and mobile office units (supplies needed to sustain the next year of operations at McMurdo).
Subsequently, the ship was loaded with ice core samples that were stored on the ship in sub-zero freezer containers. The ice core samples then were delivered to the United States for scientific study. In addition, retrograde cargo was loaded onto the ship for transportation off the continent. These include trash and recyclable materials for disposal and equipment no longer required on the station.
Following the Ocean Gladiator’s departure, the Acadia Trader arrived Feb. 1, carrying a cargo of more than seven million gallons of a special blend of diesel fuel mixed specifically for Antarctica called AN8; 1.5 million gallons of aviation fuel; and 155 thousand gallons of gasoline. Collectively, that accounts for 100 percent of the fuel needed for two years at the remote outpost.
For AB Dale Armstrong, part of the Acadia Trader crew, this was his first ODF experience.
“We loaded cargo in Seattle and Cherry Point, Washington, and then went down to American Samoa for stores,” he said. “It took three weeks to get to Antarctica. The last week started to get a little rough, weather-wise, but other than that, it was nice.”
Armstrong said crew members went ashore and visited the “Discovery Hut,” a historic building that was constructed in the early 1900s. “We also saw a lot of wildlife,” he said. “We saw a lot of penguins, seals, killer whales and birds.”
Armstrong added that after a few initial days of good weather, wind-chill temperatures dropped to around 80-below-zero (Fahrenheit) near the end of the stay.
“We made it through,” said AB Nicholas Carey, a longtime Seafarer who also was making his ODF debut. “The machinery was trying to keep up with the cold, harsh weather, but everybody was on it, from my standpoint. I also got ashore on the base, and that was pretty nice. I’d go again.”
To reach the Antarctic hub, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter first had to clear a 38-mile channel of ice, creating a path so that the SIU-crewed ships could reach McMurdo station.
ODF was established as part of the U.S.’s commitment to the Antarctic Treaty, which states that the continent shall be used for peaceful purposes and that encourages the continuation of scientific investigation, the observations of which shall be freely exchanged and available.
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