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But a successful transpolar drift has been achieved just twice before, and never by a modern research vessel.

The excellent June 13 front-page article “A frozen journey on a vanishing frontier,” describing a planned 12-month transpolar drift in an icebreaker, gave brief credit to two earlier such expeditions.

They also balk at plans to establish a village for more than 700 mostly foreign workers and transform Narsaq’s pristine harbor into a transpolar shipping facility.

"It is the best channel in the Arctic because the transpolar route and the North West Passage aren't practicable," said Mr Willis from the Royal United Services Institute.

United Continental Holdings Inc., which operates a number of transpolar flights from Chicago and Newark airports, said there had been no operational impact from the storm on Asian flights.