The polar voyages of the research vessel Sikuliaq

The Sikuliaq will dock at Alaska ports early this February, ending the first leg of a journey that started 30 years ago.

Mike Castellini will give the history of the University of Alaska Fairbanks research vessel in the third installment of the Science for Alaska Lecture Series at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 3, at the Westmark Fairbanks Hotel Gold Room.

Castellini, the associate dean of UAF’s Graduate School, has been involved with the Sikuliaq project from the time it was a series of drawings, through construction, launch, testing and now science operations. His talk, “Polar Adventures: The Voyages of the Research Vessel Sikuliaq,” will include behind-the-scenes stories of what it takes to complete such a project.

The Sikuliaq is expected arrive in Ketchikan by Feb. 10 and then sail to Seward, via Juneau, for a commemorative launch party on March 7.

The ship is the only ice-capable vessel in the United States research fleet, built especially to operate in polar seas and the regions surrounding them. It is owned by the National Science Foundation and operated by the UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences.

For more information, contact Sharice Walker at 907-474-7208 or skwalker@alaska.edu.

ON THE WEB: https://www.sikuliaq.alaska.edu/