There is also a way to make the ship roll from side to side if necessary. The trick is to break up enough ice that the boat can move through the water. For our research, however, we have been trying to avoid lots of ice because ice makes it difficult for our equipment to work properly. We haven't had to break any heavy sea ice since I've been aboard. When we go through pack ice, it sounds almost like a carwash inside the ship.
Fast ice is a type of sea ice that occurs near the coast or in protected bays.
In these areas, sometimes the sea ice becomes so large and spreads so far that it freezes to the land on more than one side. Fast ice tends to form in the area around McMurdo Station. I'm looking forward to tomorrow. We will be using a new type of instrument to gather data. It's called a CTD, and it is something that is commonly used by oceanographers.