Under the North Pole

I always wanted the top bunk as a kid. Today, it seems the bottom bunk is in much higher demand, especially when the "bunk" is the seabed beneath the North Pole. The U.S. and Canada both have claimed it. Yesterday, a Russian submarine planted a flag on the sea floor marking it's claim to the region.

The Russians staked their claim a year and a day before the U.S. celebrates the 50th anniversary of the voyage of the Nautilus. On August 2, 1958, the Nautilus, a nuclear powered submarine, became the first vessel to cross the North Pole underwater. She signaled her arrival beneath the North Pole by broadcasting "Nautilus 90 North." Ninety-six hours later, she surfaced northeast of Greenland. In fact, she made three excursions beneath the polar icecap, covering 1,383 miles over 5.5 days.

The Nautilus is often called the first true submarine because it could remain submerged for extended periods of time (weeks, moths). Today, all the combatant submarines in the U.S. Navy are nuclear.

To plant their flag, the Russians relied on Mir I and Mir II. These mini-submersibles are familiar for their trips to the Titanic and other famous wreck sites as well as the important role they continue to play in deep sea research. Powered by batteries, they carry a crew of only three. They also have manipulator arms and extensive video capabilities, allowing the crew not only to plant the flag but also to bring back video proof that they reached the sea floor beneath the North Pole, something other expeditions in traditional submarines were unable to do.

It's unlikely that I, or for that matter, most travelers, will ever visit the Arctic sea floor. Depending upon which nation or nations ultimately are able to access the natural resources, such as oil, gas and mineral deposits, believed to be there, we might use some of the resources in our travels or daily lives. The closest we are likely to get to the sea floor, however, is touring the Nautilus which is part of the U.S. Navy Submarine Force Museum located on the Thames River in Groton, Connecticut.

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Informed Ideas