People attend a ceremony to float out the nuclear-powered icebreaker "Sibir" (Siberia) at the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg, Russia September 22, 2017
© Anton Vaganov / Reuters
The first serially-produced Sibir nuclear-powered icebreaker, designed to reinforce Russia’s leadership in the Arctic, was commissioned on Friday at the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg.
It is one of the three vessels part of Project 22220 which are to become the world’s largest and most powerful nuclear icebreakers.
The lead ship of the project, the Arktika, was commissioned last year.
RT: Russia launches ‘world’s biggest & most powerful’ nuclear icebreaker
The Rockhouse has great enthusiasm for this vessel in part because she's not a warship but mostly because she is so unbelievably bad ass. She can pile into ice which is 3 meters or ten feet thick and she's not even fazed by it.
This is all for improving trade so course there's a hat tip.
Designed for transporting cargo via the Northern Sea Route, the Sibir was ordered in May 2015 and is due to be delivered in 2020. The third icebreaker, the Ural, is planned to be delivered in 2021.
Sibir has a displacement of 33,500 tons and is 173.3 meters long with a beam of 34 meters, and has a crew of 75.
The double-draft design allows for operations in both deep Arctic waters and estuaries of polar rivers. The vessel is powered by two nuclear reactors with an output of 175 MW.
The nuclear-powered Sibir will be capable of breaking ice fields up to three meters thick, making way for LNG carriers delivering Russian gas to Asian customers. It will also carry out rescue work in ice conditions and ice-free waters.
- RT
Mostly we're tired of seeing a stream of other peacetime vessels since they're typically limited to gigantic tankers or gigantic container ships and they get boring fast. There are also the billion-dollar boats for the rich and famous but so what to those as well. This Sibir isn't for cruising but blasting through ten feet of ice and the immense power needed to do that is staggering by itself but also are the hulls to be able to withstand it.
From my days in the shipyard, I know the step above is when the vessel is floated out of the dry dock so the top stuff can be installed.
Zen Yogi: top stuff?
Sure, all the stuff which isn't the bottom stuff which we can see.
Zen Yogi: I should have known
Here is her sister ship, the Arktika, and she's got all her top stuff.
Now she is one steadfast, indefatigable vessel. If she says she's coming, she will be there wherever you are even in the worst possible places. That's tough down to the last rivet holding her together.
Zen Yogi: and no guns
She's a thing of beauty, mate.
Zen Yogi: can't say I can follow you with beautiful and that orange, Silas
I have a theory.
Zen Yogi: of course you do
How about if that ghastly orange was selected because it makes such a striking effect against the ice. She could likely be spotted for incredible distances.
Zen Yogi: that's more logical than some of your theories but she still ain't beautiful
I'm holding that thought, mate, since she's not only beautiful but magnificent.
Zen Yogi: how does her power stack up next to an aircraft carrier?
You're right, Yogi. Inquiring minds need to know.
Tick.tick..tick...
Bingo. For Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, the biggest in the world, we have a rating of 190MW. (WIKI: Nimitz-class aircraft carrier)
The Sibir is rated at 175MW so there's all the more confirmation. If she says she's coming then she's going to be there.
Zen Yogi: what about the noise? Just imagine what it sounds like smashing through tons of ice at each bite.
I don't ever want to imagine that, Yogi. The Sibir needs to be tough but she needs tough sailors too.
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