China's first homemade polar icebreaker Xuelong 2 docked in Shanghai on Wednesday, which scientists said will guarantee China's polar expeditions.
The icebreaker ("Snow Dragon" in Chinese) was sent to the Jiangnan Shipyard Group in Changxing island in Shanghai on Wednesday, Science and Technology Daily reported, citing the Polar Research Institute of China.
The domestically-built icebreaker will be assembled through computer modeling. The ship's body will be separated into 114 segments and then combined into 11 blocks. The blocks will be assembled starting from the stem to the bow and from the bottom.
During the docking process, the ship will be fitted and equipment installed. After the Xuelong 2 undocks on August 28 as expected, it will undergo interior decoration, system adjustments and dock trial.
It will help the current Xuelong in polar scientific expeditions when it is completed in the first half of 2019.
Its basic design is foreign but the detailed design, production and drawing inspection were completed by domestic design institutes and companies.
Wu Gang, the chief designer of the vessel and expert from the 708th Research Institute of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), said the cooperation for the vessel is not like picking up a baton or purchasing a blueprint and design from abroad.
China and Finland are deeply integrated partners, Wu said, citing by Science and Technology Daily.
The Xuelong 2 will use two-way icebreaking technology, the first such polar icebreaker in the world. It will be easily maneuverable, especially along the complex and narrow coastal South Pole.
