SEATTLE, USA — The US Coast Guard Cutter Healy (WAGB 20) departed Seattle Thursday, beginning its annual Arctic deployment.
The crew aboard Healy, a 420-foot icebreaker, will support two distinct high-latitude missions to study the formation and movement of sea ice and the pathways followed by Atlantic and Pacific waters in the Arctic, and ocean circulation patterns in the East Siberian and Laptev seas.
The first mission will be a collaboration with the Office of Naval Research (ONR) to deploy and service instruments for its Arctic Mobile Observing System (AMOS). The system advances autonomous, mobile observing methodologies to enable studies of sea ice dynamics and improve understanding of the circulation of water masses in the Arctic. AMOS focuses on developing technologies and approaches for creating a scalable observing system for sustained, persistent presence in the ice-covered Arctic.
In partnership with the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Healy’s second mission will include recovering, servicing, and deploying long-term subsurface mooring arrays and conducting multidisciplinary surveys in support of the Nansen and Amundsen Basins Observational System (NABOS). Healy last supported AMOS and the NABOS missions in 2023.
“We are eager to return to the Arctic,” said Healy’s Commanding Officer, Capt. Kristen Serumgard. “Healy is uniquely positioned to advance scientific understanding of the Arctic environment, directly supporting security and defense of the nation’s northernmost borders and maritime approaches.”
Serumgard assumed command of Healy earlier this month, having previously served as chief of operational forces at the Coast Guard’s Atlantic Area Command.
Healy is the United States’ largest icebreaker and the Coast Guard’s only icebreaker designed and equipped with scientific instruments to support high-latitude Arctic research. The research enhances domain awareness of how the physical, operational and strategic environments will evolve, informing national strategic foresight on the Arctic and future Coast Guard operations.
In addition to facilitating science and technology operations, Healy conducts a range of Coast Guard missions, such as search and rescue, ship escorts, environmental protection and enforcement of laws and treaties.
