Aurora Borealis (ship)
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Aurora Borealis (German: Northern Lights ) is the name of a European ice-breaking research drilling ship that has been in the planning phase since 2002 (→ research ship , icebreaker , drilling ship ). The ship, which is being developed under the leadership of the Helmholtz Center Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research , is intended for use in the Arctic Ocean , especially in its central area, in summer for deep-sea drilling and in winter for general polar research both of which have not yet been possible. However, the realization of the complex project has become unlikely at the latest with the distancing of the German Science Council in 2010, which now wants to achieve the goals by other means.
concept
The aim of the project is to open up two previously inaccessible research areas:
- The exploration of the sediment layers on the bottom of the Arctic provides information about the climatic history of the region, which is of particular importance for the modeling of climatic changes. An ongoing contribution would be made to the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program in the region .
- The year-round acquisition of data, which so far is practically only available for the summer half-year, promises breakthroughs in knowledge in meteorology, biology, ecology, oceanography, physics and chemistry of the polar sea. Here, too, results for climate research can be expected, since the polar regions react particularly early and sensitively to climate changes and reinforcement mechanisms (e.g. changes in the albedo and thermohaline circulation ) also become effective.
In order to achieve these goals, the ship should in principle combine and expand the capabilities of the heavy Russian icebreakers of the Arktika class , the US deep-sea drilling ship JOIDES Resolution used in the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program and the German polar research ship Polarstern .
technology
The ship is designed as a heavy icebreaker that can break perennial ice up to a maximum of 2.5 meters thick at a speed of 2 to 3 knots . The high power required for this is provided by three propellers, each driven with 27 megawatts. Behind the propeller means which is balanced rudder (with ice class according ice horn of the rudder headbox arranged). Due to the special shape on the sides of the hull in connection with the powerful retractable transverse thrusters on the bow and stern , the ship can also break ice drifting to the side. Such a powerful dynamic positioning system is necessary to keep the ship in position during the drilling without external help against drifting ice, which changes its direction with the wind speed.
For geological research, the ship is to be equipped with a derrick, with the help of which it will be possible to drill up to 1,000 meters into the sea floor in a water depth of up to 5,000 meters. The drill string is drained in the middle of the ship through a so-called moon pool , an opening in the ship's hull. Sea state-related movements axially to the drill rod can be compensated for via a sea state follower device.
The use of autonomous (AUV) and remote-controlled (ROV) underwater vehicles is possible via a second moon pool . There is hangar and deck space for three helicopters. In addition to several permanently installed laboratories, further laboratory containers can be loaded.
Deployment strategy
The deep-sea drilling with the ship is only planned in the summer months (June – September), with the less favorable ice conditions in winter the performance of the dynamic positioning would no longer be sufficient. During the rest of the time, atmospheric observations and studies of ocean currents and the Arctic ecosystem will be carried out. One month a year is reserved for maintenance, modernization and retrofitting. The total useful life should be 35 to 40 years, with an extensive general overhaul in the middle of this period. Another consequence of the year-round use at the North Pole is that the medium icebreaker Polarstern is released for its remaining useful life for year-round research in Antarctica . In this way, additional scientifically usable time is gained and costs are saved by eliminating the need for transfers between the poles, especially if the base port is to be relocated to South Africa.
costs
The integration of all functions in one ship should also lead to cost savings compared to the alternative possible use of an ice-reinforced deep-sea drill ship accompanied by several icebreakers and a polar research ship. For the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program in late summer 2004 in the Arctic, 339 meters of drill cores were obtained from three drilling sites from a depth of only 1200 meters from the Lomonossow Ridge , which already brought extensive new knowledge. However, the cost of this six-week Arctic Coring Expedition ACEX was ten million euros (use of three ice breakers of different sizes, Sovetskiy Soyuz and Oden, to crush the 2–4 meter thick ice sheets, drifting at 0.5 knots, in front of the drilling Vidar Viking , as well as two ice observation and Transfer helicopter). The construction costs of the Aurora Borealis are estimated at 650 to 850 million euros, the annual operating costs at 36 million euros. Due to the foreseeable high financial outlay, the ship was planned as a European joint project from the start.
Project history
Concrete planning for the concept developed in 2001 at the Alfred Wegener Institute began in 2002. After the technical feasibility study completed by the Hamburgische Schiffbauversuchsanstalt in 2004, the Science Council assessed the project in 2005/06, which at that time had construction costs of 355 and annual operating costs of 17 5 million euros was estimated. He recommended its continuation and the immediate provision of the requested 6 million euros for further necessary engineering work. At the same time, he stated that this research infrastructure only makes sense within a European framework and that the project should be integrated accordingly. The Federal Ministry of Research and Technology then financed the corresponding work from March 2007 to January 2009. Fifteen institutional partners from ten European countries, including the Arctic bordering Norway and the Russian Federation, joined forces to form the European Polar Research Icebreaker Consortium ERICON, which is part of the European Science Foundation and which the European Commission provided with 4.5 million euros for the period from March 2008 to February 2012 is funded and deals with the strategic, organizational, financial and legal issues of the project. The start of construction was planned for 2012, two years later the ship should be put into service.
On November 12, 2010, the Science Council recommended that instead of the Aurora Borealis, a heavy research icebreaker with a moon pool, but without drilling equipment, be built for an estimated 450 million euros with German funding, the existing seabed drilling rigs to be further developed for a drilling depth of 200 meters and the service life of the Polarstern if possible to be extended with European funding so that it can be used simultaneously at the North and South Poles for three to five years. One reason for this was the doubled cost estimate from December 2008 compared to 2004 (€ 650–850 million construction, € 36 million operation) and the still missing joint financing. In addition, there was the realization that the essential geological knowledge for climate research can already be gained with 200-meter drilling, and the technical development of seabed drilling rigs that can be set down from ships. The Stena Icemax (US $ 1.15 billion), which went into service in 2012, is also an ice-reinforced deep-sea drilling vessel on the market that could be chartered for occasional deeper drilling with icebreaker assistance.
Web links
- Website for the project ( Memento from July 20, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
- Science Council gives the green light for the "Aurora Borealis"
Individual evidence
- ↑ Aurora Borealis - Research Icebreaker of the Future , World of Physics.
- ↑ Technical design of the research vessel Aurora Borealis announced , Innovation Report - Forum for Science, Industry and Economy, December 11, 2008.
- ↑ Aurora Borealis: Icebreaker, Drill Ship and Multipurpose Research Vessel for the Polar Seas , press release, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, December 3, 2008.
- ↑ Expedition 302 - Arctic Coring Expedition ( Memento from October 29, 2010 in the Internet Archive ), ECORD Science Operator (ESO).
- ↑ a b Recommendations for the future development of the German marine research fleet, Wissenschaftsrat, Lübeck, 2010 (printed matter 10330-10; PDF, 3.1 MB).
- ↑ Statement on two large-scale devices in basic scientific research: Free-electron laser for soft X-rays (BESSY FEL) and ice-breaking research drilling ship (AURORA BOREALIS) , Wissenschaftsrat, Nuremberg, 2006 (printed matter 7269-06; PDF, 1.2 MB).
- ↑ Icebreaker, Drill Ship and Multipurpose Research Vessel - Technical Details ( Memento from January 1, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), European Science Foundation, Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research.