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Iceberg Research

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Description:
Icebergs are one of the most dangerous elements of the natural environment, both for shipping and for the functioning of engineering structures and communications located in the shelf zone of the Arctic and subarctic seas. Without taking this phenomenon into account, the development of natural resources is associated with an increased risk both from the point of view of the safety of navigation and mining on the mainland shelf, and from the point of view of minimizing damage to the environment during the consequences of possible collisions of icebergs with structures at sea. A collision with icebergs can be avoided with a well-organized monitoring (tracking) service using various technical means for their movement.
Overview:

In the Arctic seas of Russia it is necessary to consider four main sources of iceberg formation:

· Franz Josef Land,
· New Earth,
· Svalbard, · North Land.

There are four possible ways to assess the likelihood of an iceberg collision with a hydraulic construction project:

Studies of the probabilistic characteristics of the distribution of icebergs in the area of interest according to historical data.
For this, you can use the data of aerial reconnaissance and ship observations made by Russia for the period from 1888 to 1991. The array of observations of the deployment of icebergs in the Barents and Kara Seas and partly in the Arctic Basin includes over 19 thousand fixations and contains information about the date of detection, the number of icebergs and their coordinates.

Use data from special observations of the formation and drift of icebergs.
The formation process is investigated during coastal work on glaciers. In this case, the dynamics of the glacier and the characteristic properties of its ice are determined, which subsequently allows us to identify the formation site of icebergs discovered in the open sea.
Iceberg trajectories are formed as a result of the influence of many natural factors. In this case, the acting forces are in a complex, nonlinear interaction, both among themselves and with the iceberg itself, depending on its shape, size, mass, etc. To analyze the trajectories, drift data of automatic buoys installed on icebergs is used.
Similar observations are successfully implemented by the Arctic Shelf during the expeditionary work.

Perform mathematical modeling of iceberg drift.
If there are no observations of iceberg drift, the tidal drift of icebergs is calculated using a three-dimensional hydrodynamic model (Polyakov et. Al., 1994).
The drift is complex, representing the sum of the translational and circular motion. In our opinion, the mesoscale circular movements of icebergs pose a great threat to offshore structures, as in this case, the iceberg should not be considered as a material point with the characteristic size of the iceberg, but as an object having the "size of the daily circulation" of the iceberg. This circumstance, apparently, leads to an increase in the probability of an iceberg colliding with the object and requires special investigation.


Iceberg drift trajectory


Build a probabilistic model for assessing the collision of icebergs with platforms.
In the framework of this approach, the danger of an iceberg colliding with a hydraulic structure can be estimated taking into account the data of field observations of icebergs, the tortuosity of the iceberg trajectory and its circulation under the action of tidal currents.
It must be pointed out that this approach cannot fully describe the probability of an iceberg colliding with the platform, since the movements of the iceberg are sufficiently deterministic and their description using random walks is not entirely legitimate (although there is reason to believe that the total movement of a large number of icebergs is sufficient degrees randomly), but this technique allows us to estimate the desired probability.

The likelihood of an iceberg colliding with the platform can be reduced if the possibility of an active impact on the drift is provided.
In 2004 and 2005, during the winter expeditions Shtokman-2004 and Shtokman-2005 organized by the Arctic Shelf Laboratory, the technology of towing icebergs was successfully tested . This can significantly improve the safety of construction and operation of hydraulic structures on the shelf of the Arctic seas.

Laboratory "Arctic shelf" them. G.K. Zubakin

Locations: Russia, Saint-Petersburg
Main Products/Services: Scientific developments and modern equipment for the development of the shelf of the polar regions
Year Established: 1991