See a timelapse of U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy breaking through the ice floe during the Hidden Ocean 2016: Chukchi Borderlands expedition.
Healy breaks ice by using an “ice knife” on the bow that was specially designed to cut into and break ice, which then allows the ice to pass down each side of the ship. In thinner, first-year ice, ice breaking for this cutter is a snap. However, ice thick enough to endure at least one melting season (called multi-year ice) puts up more of a fight.
In ice this thick, the going is slow. Very slow. The ship uses the ice knife and also rafts up onto the ice, which momentarily holds the weight of the ship before giving way to the tons of steel above it. Healy then backs up a ship-length or two and uses this cleared space to build up momentum and ram the ice again. It’s an impressive process to see from the bow, and perhaps even more impressive to hear as the ice scrapes along the hull, creaking and groaning as it breaks.
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Video courtesy of The Hidden Ocean 2016: Chukchi Borderlands, Oceaneering-DSSI.