The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Cutter Healy has returned to their home port in Seattle following a four-month deployment in the Arctic. In addition to providing presence and access in the Arctic during the 129-day summer deployment, the Healy crew completed three research missions in partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Office of Naval Research, conducting physical and biological research in the Arctic Ocean.

The crew’s first mission was a NOAA-sponsored project aimed at furthering the understanding of the changing biological picture in the Arctic,along with studying the physical oceanography and offshore ocean currents in both the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. The findings from this mission will aid scientists in studying the biological conditions in the polar region.

The second mission, supported by the Office of Naval Research, is part of a larger, multi-year Arctic study program. This mission focused on studying the effects of water inflow and surface force changes on ocean stratification and sea ice in the Beaufort Sea. In completing this mission, the Healy crew deployed specialized instruments on ice floes and placed subsurface moorings on the seafloor, which will remain in the Arctic until next year.

Healy’s final mission, sponsored by NSF, was aimed at understanding the effects of the Pacific and Atlantic water-inflow and the associated boundary current in the Arctic ecosystem. As part of a multi-year endeavor, this study captures measurements from subsurface moorings deployed on the Barrow Canyon Slope as well as data collected from Healy’s onboard scientific equipment.

Under the command of USCG Captain Greg Tlapa, the Healy is the premiere high-latitude research vessel in the U.S. and is the only U.S. military surface vessel that deploys to and is capable of operating in the ice-covered waters of the Arctic.In addition to science operations, Healy is capable of conducting a range of USCG operations such as search and rescue,ship escorts, environmental protection and the enforcement of laws and treaties in the Polar Regions. Healy provides access and presence throughout the Arctic region to protect U.S. maritime borders and to safeguard the maritime economy.

At 420-ft. long, with a displacement of more than 16,000 tons and a permanent crew of 87, Healy is the largest ship in the USCG. Commissioned in 2000, Healy is one of two active icebreakers in the U.S. fleet; the other is the USCG Cutter Polar Star, the service’s only heavy icebreaker, home ported in Seattle. Commissioned in 1976, Polar Star recently departed for a four-month Antarctic deployment to support Operation Deep Freeze 2019.

Operation Deep Freeze is the logistical support provided by the U.S. Armed Forces to the U.S. Antarctic Program. During Operation Deep Freeze, Polar Star carves a navigable path through seasonal and multi-year ice, sometimes as much as 10-ft. thick,for supply ships to deliver annual operating supplies and fuel to NSF research stations in Antarctica.

USCG has been the sole provider of U.S. polar icebreaking capability since 1965, and it is seeking to increase its ice breaking fleet with six new polar security cutters to ensure continued national presence and access to the polar regions. —USCG

View more images from the USCGC Healy expedition here.