ICEBREAKER AT LYTTELTON

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28128, 17 November 1956, Page 10

ICEBREAKER AT LYTTELTON

U.S.S. Glacier Arrives From Antarctic

With her plates scraped bare of paint for several feet above the waterline, the United States Navy’s most modern icebreaker, the 8775-ton U.S.S. Glacier, berthed at Lyttelton yesterday from Little America. Leaving her base at Davisville. Rhode Island, just two months ago yesterday, the Glacier skirted the pack ice after leaving Valparaiso, Chile, then headed south to break through 800 miles in nine days and reach McMurdo Sound earlier than any ship of any Antarctic expedition has before. Her captain is Commander Bernard Lauff, who is making his first trip to the Antarctic. Heading south into the Ross Sea on October 20, the Glacier began breaking and battering her way through the pack ice. The ice itself was only four to eight feet thick, but it was pressured into ridges up to 30 feet thick. At times the going was rough. But the powerful icebreaker broke through 800 miles in nine days to deliver the top-priority jato bottles for the Navy VX6 squadron aircraft and an advance party of 25 Seabees— Construction Battalion men. At McMurdo Sound the Glacier came alongside the ice about 12 miles from the base and off-loaded about 140 tons of cargo, which was carried across the ice by tractor train. Special priority cargo for the Little America base was four tons of dynamite for the smashing of snow bridges across crevasses by the Marie Byrd uand trail party. The Glacier will spend 18 days in port, and will sail again for McMurdo Sound on December 4.

Big Iceberg Seen A huge “fiat top” iceberg, 67 miles long by 20 wide and up to 100 feet high, was picked up on the radar screen of the Glacier when she was nearing the northern limits of the pack ice late on Monday night. It was 20 miles off when first spotted, and as the icebreaker followed up the path of smashed ice in its wake she reduced speed. Under an overcast sky, and with blowing snow thick in the air, the berg was not seen until it was 700 yards away.

Using his radar to “feel” his way around it. Commander Lauff plotted the iceberg’s area and height, but did not track it to estimate its speed. Dr. Willis Tressler, of the U.S. Navy Hydrographic Office, adviser to the bathythermograph team on board, and an oceanographer, described it as the biggest he had ever seen. Lieutenant Joseph Morgan, the ship’s explosives officer, had a special assignment while the Glacier was at McMurdo Sound. He was asked to go over to the Dry valley and “blow a hunk off a glacier.” It was wanted for scientific analysis by Dr. Tressler. “So we went on over to the Commonwealth glacier and placed a 141 b charge right in the end,” said Lieutenant Morgan. "We blew a piece out and took it back for the doc. to have a look at. He was pleased with it.”