15.16 UTC – S/Y NANUQ docked at a quay in Ísafjörður harbour, Iceland. The crossing from Greenland had been initiated yesterday in the evening and the boat could make a fast cruise thanks to favourable winds. The decision to conclude the activities in Greenland was taken by Prof. Gallinelli after reviewing the latest ice reports in the area. In a message before departure, the Skipper reported that “Blosseville is almost completely closed-in and taking a chance to make a call to the few still accessible places (…) bears great risk of getting locked-in for an unforseeable time”. The expedition’s early return to Iceland implied the cancellation of several planned research activities; nevertheless, those which could actually be conducted will still give the workgroup much to do for the autumn and winter months. NANUQ2020 conducted two successful complete expeditive surveys in the research areas, including drone flights, water samplings, instrumental measurements, ground observations; a large set of images about the visited environment was acquired by the automated onboard cameras and by crewmembers. Besides the geographical and environmental observation campaign, the expedition brings back much data about boat management, navigation and procedures in dense and closed ice, adding to the workgroup know-how in anticipation of planned future research. After their arrival in Iceland the expedition members are taking a long-waited-for break from work at sea, but the expedition is not over. Additional activities are planned for the next days and will be conducted in Iceland, to acquire environmental data about relevant points of interest in the area.
Docking video by Kevin Monneron