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US to retire its only icebreaker, stranding polar research
- k310 1y agoNSF is. The Coast Guard has icebreakers and does research. I knew several buddies who did so, though the MST (Marine Science Technician) rating seems to focus more on security these days. The "old guard" My, how things change. A new icebreaker was just added. https://www.mycg.uscg.mil/News/Article/4016098/coast-guard-adds-first-polar-icebreaker-to-its-fleet-in-25-years/ https://www.mycg.uscg.mil/News/Article/4016098/coast-guard-a...
- whatshisface 1y agoIt doesn't sound like the coast guard icebreakers server a purpose, so this is really a decline to zero.
- k310 1y agoThey serve a purpose, for all those dollars!! They did research when I served, a mere 50 years ago! These days, as part of DHS, not DOT, I can imagine that research is a dirty word compared to "projecting national interests" and the Commandant was summarily dismissed for predictable reasons. So I can't say what research, if any, is conducted these days. One can ask. A recent comparison of CG and NSF breakers, the latter of which is now zero, is in this congressional report. Physical page 45. https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/RL/PDF/RL34391/RL34391.281.pdf https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/RL/PDF/RL3439...
- hengheng 1y agoHas the research aspect ever been more than a fig leaf and a "might as well"? Strong parallel to rockets and high-altitude planes used for atmospheric research ...
- k310 1y agoThat, I can't say. I was at the commisioning of the Coast Guard R&D Center in Groton, 50+ years ago, and it moved across the river to a big facility in New London. Here is the place to look for research. I did look up the R&D center a while back with my impending 50 year anniversary of service. I was in the Physics branch and knew buddies in oceano. Our guy Dennis got multispectral photos of ice with a Hasselblad UV-Sonnar. Quartz and CaF elements. Who can forget that? https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Acquisitions-CG-9/Research-Development-Test-and-Evaluation/Research-and-Development-Center/ https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Command... HTH
- dnemmers 1y ago“the sole U.S. icebreaker dedicated to Antarctic research. ” For some reason I read the title as the last icebreaker in the USA being retired.
- WorkerBee28474 1y agoBecause that's what the headline says, because that's sensational and the truth is not.
- masfuerte 1y agoI used to flag stories very sparingly but I've changed my mind. Clickbait titles get flagged. I don't care how interesting the story is. As the guidelines say: > ... please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait; ...
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- fluidcruft 1y agoThe article also says it's being "decommissioned" when it's merely not renewing the lease. I wonder who owns it and if anyone knows what they plan to do with it?
- tocs3 1y agoAsk and maybe some one will look it up on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_B._Palmer_(icebreaker) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_B._Palmer_(icebreake...
- hilbert42 1y agoFrom the outside it's horrible to watch the great US nation sink bit by bit into third world status.
- notyourwork 1y agoIn what way?
- jasonm23 1y agoBy having a population who reads a clickbait headline, doesn't read the article, doesn't do any further study, and then propagates the falsehood and moves on to the next one. In that way.