SCICEX, standing for ''Scientific Ice Expeditions'', was a five-year (1995–1999) scientific research program involving a collaboration between the
U.S. Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...
and academic researchers from a variety of different universities. The object of study was geophysical and oceanological conditions in the
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five oceanic divisions. It spans an area of approximately and is the coldest of the world's oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, ...
. The Navy made available a nuclear submarine for each research cruise.
Margo Edwards was the chief scientist for the 1999 expedition and spent thirteen days on the
USS Hawkbill, thereby becoming the first women to live aboard a Navy nuclear submarine during under-ice operations.
Edwards' research found evidence of climate change in the Arctic, including thinning sea ice, volcanoes on the seafloor,
and warm water moving into the Arctic from the Atlantic Ocean.
These data are available for anyone to view.
List of Expeditions
* SCICEX/93 ·
USS Pargo
* SCICEX/95 ·
USS Cavalla
* SCICEX/96 ·
USS Pogy
* SCICEX/97 ·
USS Archerfish
* SCICEX/98 ·
USS Hawkbill
* SCICEX/99 ·
USS Hawkbill
External links
SCICEX web site2004 article on the SCICEX program
in ''Arctic Research of the United States
The Arctic (; . ) is the polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway (Nordland, Troms, Finnma ...
'' magazine
SCICEX/96 photo gallery
on the USS Pogy web site
SCICEX Phase 2 Memorandum of Agreement
from 2000 on the Arctic Submarine Laboratory
The Arctic Submarine Laboratory is a research facility of the U.S. Navy's Undersea Warfighting Development Center in San Diego, California. It began as a converted World War II Mortar (artillery), mortar emplacement, ''Battery Whistler'', and wa ...
web site
SCICEX/99 page
at the USS Hawkbill web site
SCICEX/99 page
at the University of Alaska Fairbanks
The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-, National Sea Grant College Program, sea-, and National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program, space-grant research university in ...
Institute of Marine Science
CNN documentary on SCICEX/99
in '' Undersea Warfare'' magazine
USS Pogy Alumni Site
References
Scientific organizations based in the United States
Oceanography
Environmental science
Arctic research
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