Russia’s Nuclear-Powered Icebreaker Begins Its Service: Clears Up Ice Along Yenisei River

The nuclear-powered icebreaker Taymyr has cleared more paths on the frozen Yenisei River. This will help prevent ice jams during the spring's high waters and protect the residents of local communities from flooding. Yulia Ryabinkina on how peaceful nuclear power is harnessed in the service of people. The huge 20,000-ton vessel is rapidly gaining speed. It's 14 degrees F outside and a strong northern wind is blowing. It feels more like it's below zero. The route has been charted in coordination with a hydrologist. Satellite navigation systems and depth maps helped chart the optimal route. The icebreaker needs to clear waterways in the section with the highest risk of ice jams. With the riverbed very narrow here, the captain is in for a job of surgical precision. Sergey Kiselev, commander: "The situation is somewhat more difficult than average this year. Strong northern winds were blowing very often. They have, as we say, "bottlenecked" the entire southern portion, the entryway, the Yenisei Gulf, the Gulf of Ob, creating a rather challenging ice situation there". Local fishermen see the icebreaker off. It's high season for ice fishing in northern Krasnoyarsk Krai. They're waving their hands, and the most audacious are trying to get close for a nice selfie. We are departing from Dudinka; behind me is Russia's largest seaport. The nuclear-powered icebreaker Taymyr is heading for Shelmovskie Islands, They have approximately 25 miles to cover; the speed is 10 knots. But the high speed must be reduced as the icebreaker turns from a shipping lane into solid ice. The nine-deck giant starts to shudder slightly. The tremors are felt strongest in the wheelhouse. The crew keep calm though. Taymyr residents got a real taste of the Yenisey's awesome power in 1999. A huge ice jam that had formed at the riverhead suddenly pushed the water level up to 72 feet. Not only the port but also the airport, a portion of Dudinka, and a local community went underwater. People barely had time to evacuate by helicopter. Explosives experts and the Northern Sea's workhorses, the nuclear icebreakers, help avoid this scenario. River-going vessels haven't navigated this portion of the Yenisei since last October. The ice here is tough, 3 to 5-feet thick. The speed falls to 2 knots, but there's no need to stop and set off explosives. The heavy hull drives over a sheet of ice to crush it under its own weight. The icebreaker leaves a 100-foot-wide waterway in its wake. It seems like the water inside it is boiling – it's the work of three powerful screw propellers. The shafts in the engine room are rotating at incredible speed. All of the machinery, from the engines to the steering mechanisms, get their power from a nuclear reactor. Its parameters are monitored 24/7 from the control center. Cutting paths through a 50-mile section of the river took us 11 hours. We will return home at sunset. Paths in the ice have been made. The flood threat to the local communities has most likely been averted. The Taymyr nuclear icebreaker is leaving Dudinka with a feeling of a job well done. Next time, the residents of the Arctic capital will only see it in January. The icebreaker will be escorting sea-going vessels. Yulia Ryabinkina, Alexander Ryabinkin. Vesti, Taymyr.