US Coast Guard Cutter Healy returns following ONR Arctic autonomous testing

Cutter Healy , shown here being replenished in Seward, Alaska, recently deployed with US naval research Arctic sensing equipment. (Janes/Michael Fabey)

US Coast Guard (USCG) Cutter Healy (WAGB 20), one of the country's three polar-capable icebreakers, returned to its home port recently in Seattle, Washington, following a deployment that included testing of the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Arctic Mobile Observing System (AMOS), the USCG confirmed on 31 October.

Healy deployed in June with AMOS, the USCG noted in a 25 June release. “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,” the USCG said.

“AMOS focuses on developing technologies and approaches for creating a scalable observing system for sustained, persistent presence in the ice-covered Arctic,” it added.

In a 22 March 2022 presentation for the Institute of Northern Engineering University of Alaska Fairbanks, ONR said, “AMOS is a distributed autonomous network of sensor platforms for Arctic awareness.”

Noting “limited in situ Arctic sensing capabilities” in the presentation, ONR said, “The navy lacks a persistent capability to collect observations in support of MDA [multidomain awareness] and forecasts of the maritime Arctic to support fleet operations.”

For more information on recent naval Arctic operations, please see US, NATO hone Arctic skills across High Northern latitudes .

ONR noted, “Operational capability of surface ships in [Arctic] summer months is marginal due to weather and sea ice. US Navy (USN) presence in [the Arctic] winter and spring is limited to submarines and ice surface [operations] at biennial ice camps.”