How do icebreakers break the ice that is several meters thick in the polar regions? Crash at full power?
If the sea surface is replaced by ice, almost all ships will run aground, except for this slow-moving ship on the ice, which is an icebreaker. So what kind of magical device is this? How did it break the ice? Driving unimpeded on the ocean has always been the pursuit of human beings. Although the sea can drive ships, the ocean conditions are quite complicated. Some seas are covered with thick ice and snow, and ordinary ships cannot operate at all. To solve this problem, icebreakers came into being. The world's first icebreaker was completed by Russia in 1864, and now Russia's icebreaking technology is also the world's leading. The reason for this is that although Russia is large, it does not have a good outlet to the sea. Although it is backed by the Arctic Ocean, it is covered with ice and snow, making it impossible for ordinary ships to pass. Therefore, in order to open up a new Arctic Ocean route, Russia took the lead. Research on icebreakers. Icebreakers are very different from our common ordinary ships. First of all, the proportion of icebreakers is very different from that of ordinary sea ships. The hull of icebreakers is generally short in the longitudinal direction and wide in the transverse direction. This hull structure is conducive to the development of wider icebreakers. 's channel. And a modern icebreaker with a displacement of 37,000 tons has a length of 194 meters and a width of 32.2 meters. Compared with traditional ocean ships, the icebreaker is more like a "macho" with a muscle burst. At the same time, the outer shell of the icebreaker is at least 5 cm thick steel plate, and its interior is supported by a number of dense steel members. In order to better break the ice, all parts of the waterline of the hull are reinforced with impact-resistant alloys. Today, among the world's icebreakers, the top five are all Russian icebreakers. They are Lenin, Arctic, Yamal, 50 Years Victory and Marshal Makarov, while China's "Xuelong" icebreaker Also among the top ten in the world. Icebreakers can be said to be a major invention in human navigation and exploration. Only with icebreakers can humans go deep into the hinterland of ice and snow. So how exactly does such an advanced icebreaker work? Although icebreakers in the world are different, the icebreaking methods they use are actually similar. For different ice conditions, icebreakers will use different icebreaking methods. For some broken ice floating on the ocean, or the ice surface on the ocean has just frozen, and the thickness of the ice layer has not exceeded 1.5 meters, then the icebreaker will use a method called continuous icebreaking method to break the ice . As the name suggests, the crushing method is to use the weight of the hull to crush these thin ice layers. The specific operation is to rely on the power of the hull itself and the solid crushed ice structure of the bow to split these not too thick ice layers. Open, and such an ice-breaking speed can reach 9.2 kilometers per hour. In fact, this method is very simple to understand. It relies on the solid steel plate at the bow and the power of the hull to smash the ice fragments, and then is knocked aside by the hull to open up a road that ordinary ships can pass through. Can. Of course, if the thickness of the ice layer facing the icebreaker exceeds 1.5 meters, then the icebreaker at this time needs to use an impact ice breaking method to break the ice. Because the ice is relatively thick, ordinary impacts cannot break the ice. At this time, the icebreaker will run at full power and drive the bow directly to the ice. Of course, we don't have to worry about the icebreaker running aground. When the bow of the ship weighing hundreds of tons hit the ice, the ice was overwhelmed and was finally cut by the bow of the icebreaker. In order to open a channel, the icebreaker will repeat this operation continuously until the ice surface is cleared. do you know? In different historical periods, the role of icebreakers is actually different. So what is the purpose of countries with icebreakers in the world? The country that first started to develop icebreakers was Russia, and the purpose of their development of icebreakers was very simple, that is, to be able to open up a route to the Arctic Ocean. Except for the estuary in the Arctic Ocean, all of Russia's estuaries are in the inland waters of Europe, and this is also very vulnerable to the targeting of these countries. Therefore, Russia began to develop its own icebreaker and was determined to open up a route in the Arctic Ocean. Today, Russia's icebreaker technology is already the world's first, and the current Arctic Ocean ice surface is like "walking on the ground" for Russia. In addition, in today's unpredictable international situation, opening up a route in the Arctic will not only increase economic and trade exchanges, but also has very important strategic significance. Because we know that if we talk about the distance between Russia and the United States, of course, it is the closest to the Arctic Ocean. And Russia's leading ice-breaking technology allows it to deploy its own strategic forces in the Arctic Ocean, which is a considerable threat to the United States. In order to compete with Russia, the United States has also begun to develop icebreaker technology, and their purpose is very simple, that is, to deploy their own troops in the Arctic Ocean to deter other countries. Of course, unlike these countries, my country's Xuelong icebreaker was born entirely for scientific research. It is not only a major proof that my country has broken through the foreign technology blockade, but also fills the gap in the field of major equipment for polar scientific research in my country. Ice-breaking technology has allowed mankind to break through the limitations imposed by the natural environment once again. It is believed that with the development of technology, mankind will be able to complete all explorations of the earth's environment.