How nuclear icebreakers work - and the reversible ships that will replace them

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Russia's NS 50 Let Pobedy, the world's biggest icebreaker

Russia's NS 50 Let Pobedy, the world's biggest icebreaker (Photo: Anton Chmelev from St.-Petersburg, Russia)

MT Tempera, one of the new class of double acting reversible ships, going ahead in open water

A double acting ship in reverse, propeller facing to the rear and breaking ice

A double acting ship in forward running configuration

MT Tempera, one of the new class of double acting reversible ships, going backwards to act as an icebreaker

Yamal, a nuclear icebreaker, in action

A diesel powered icebreaker leads a container ship through sea ice

Russia's NS 50 Let Pobedy, the world's biggest icebreaker (Photo: Dmitryi Kascheev)

Russia's NS 50 Let Pobedy, the world's biggest icebreaker

A satellite photo showing Scandinavia and northern Russia, and the encroachment of sea ice during winter (Image: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC)

The arctic circle, viewed from above the North pole

Northern Russia and the Berents sea (Photo: Shutterstock)

Icebreaker in action (Photo: Shutterstock)

MT Tempera, one of the new class of double acting reversible ships, going backwards to act as an icebreaker

Azipod rotating thrusters, fitted to a ship under construction

Azipod rotating thruster, fitted to a ship under construction

Article Summary

The Arctic North end of Russia is believed to hold as much as a quarter of all the world's oil deposits - an utterly monstrous economic prize, hidden in one of the toughest and least hospitable environments on the planet. Getting to this prize, and then transporting it back to refineries, is a monolithic task that requires one of the most awe-inspiring pieces of machinery man has ever built - the nuclear icebreaker. Purpose-built to the point of being almost unseaworthy on the open waves, these goliaths smash their way through 10-foot thick ice crusts to create viable pathways for other vessels - but fascinating new technologies could mean the days of the dedicated icebreaker are numbered.

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