Since 1993, civilian oceanographers and geophysicists have made nearly
annual research cruises to the Arctic Ocean aboard US Navy submarines
through the SCICEX
program, which is run jointly by four funding agencies
(ONR,
NSF, USGS, and NOAA)
and the operational Navy. The submarines,
all of which are Sturgeon-class, nuclear-powered, fast-attack submarines first
developed in the 1960s, became available for this use as part of the
"peace dividend" following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in
1991. These submarines are almost 300 feet (92 m) long and capable
of operating to depths up to 800 feet (246 m) and at speeds up to 25
knots (12.5 m/s). This enables the submarines, which are equipped with
forward-looking sonar for avoidance of deep ice-keels, to cover vast
distances of the upper ocean regardless of the surface ice conditions.
The submarines used in the Arctic are also capable of surfacing through
ice up to 3-4 feet (1 m) thick, allowing the researchers to conduct
sampling from the surface when ice conditions permit.
Since space aboard the submarines is very limited, data is typically
collected from the submarine by about four scientists/technicians on
behalf of a much larger number of scientists who remain on shore. ESR
researchers have taken an active role in the
SCICEX program,
both as cruise participants and principal investigators (PIs) of research
projects since 1996.
John Gunn
participated in the 1997 cruise aboard the
USS Archerfish.
He was responsible for the collection of a unique set of
ADCP profiles from the submarine in order to measure upper layer velocity shear.
Robin Muench has been a
PI for the Scicex program since 1996. He has studied the....
He is scheduled to take part in the cruise aboard the Hawkbill scheduled for 1998, when sampling
will be coordinated with the SHEBA program.