Storm Rocks Arctic Research Ship Like 'Titanic Bulldozer'
After the storm, the sun rose on the icebound ship. Now, says one scientist, "the system is waking up."
83.07 Degrees NorthWe awoke to a deafening noise. First a low grumble and a moan, then high-pitched screeches that brought to mind a freight train grinding to a halt. The whole ship trembled and rocked. Then a peaceful quiet returned.
Outside the Lance’s frost-covered portholes, the frozen surface of the Arctic Ocean appeared transformed. Huge slabs of snowpacked ice were piled up nearly as high as the port-side railing. The barren white plain beyond had become strewn with rubble. Squeezed on both sides, the Lance had been lifted three feet (one meter). It was as though, overnight, some titanic bulldozer had rumbled in from the south and rearranged the entire jigsaw puzzle of sea ice in its path.
“There is a pleasant, comfortable feeling
