NS 50 Years Since Victory

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NS 50 Years Since Victory or 50 Years Anniversary of Victory (Russian name 50 Let Pobedy, Russian: 50 лет Победы) is a Russian Arktika class nuclear powered icebreaker, the largest in the world as of 2007.

Construction on project no. 10521 started on October 4, 1989 at the Baltic Works in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Originally the ship was named NS Ural. Work was halted in 1993 for lack of funds, so that the real 50 Years Anniversary of Victory Day in 1995 found the ship in an abandoned state. Construction was restarted in 2003 and finally completed in the beginning of 2007, after the 60th Anniversary. The icebreaker sailed into the Gulf of Finland for two weeks of sea trials on February 1, 2007.

Upon completing sea trials, icebreaker returned to St-Petersburg Baltic shipyard and started preparations for her maiden voyage to Murmansk. The new icebreaker showed superior characteristics for an icebreaker such as exceptional maneuverability and a top speed of 21.4 knots. It’s expected that she will arrive to Murmansk by the end of March 2007. ^[1]

The icebreaker is an upgrade of the Arktika-class, the 159-meter (522-foot) long and 30-meter (100-foot) wide vessel, with a deadweight of 25,000 metric tons, is designed to break through ice up to 2.8 meters deep (9.2 feet). It has a 138-man crew. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

[edit] Specifications

• Length: 159.6 m (522 feet)
• Breadth: 30 m (28 m at the waterline)
• Displacement: 25,000 metric tons
• Power plant: 2 nuclear reactors
• The thickness of ice that can be broken – 2,8 metres.

[edit] References

1. ^ A ship called ’Fifty years after the victory’ by Anastasia Yakonuk. Sveriges Radio (February 26, 2007). Retrieved on March 8, 2007.
2. ^ Russia tests nuclear icebreaker on open sea. RIA Novosti (16:51 31/01/2007). Retrieved on February 2, 2007.
3. ^ Titans of the Upper Latitudes. Aeroflot in-flight magazine (2006 #1). Retrieved on January 31, 2007.
4. ^ Russia to get new nuclear-powered icebreaker this year. Bellona.org (01/03-2006). Retrieved on February 2, 2007.