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Arctic Ocean

On its maiden voyage, the nuclear powered Russian icebreaker Yamal made the first surface ship rendezvous near the North Pole with the Canadian icebreaker CCGS Louis S. St. Laurent and the US Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea on 23 August 1994. To mark the unexpected occasion, the crew of the Yamal hosted a barbecue on the ice for crew members from all the ships. This expedition also marked the first time US and Canadian surface ships reached the North Pole. During this expedition the furthermost Polar Bear was captured and tagged at 84°15′N. The USCGC Polar Sea has been out of service since 2010. Photo courtesy of the US Coast Guard/ LCDR Steve Wheeler.