• Spatial Information Research
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.19-26
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• 2014

International attention on the Northern Sea Route has been increased as the decreased sea-ice extents in Northern Sea raise the possibility to develop new sea routes and natural resources. However, to protect ships' safety and pristine environments in polar waters, International Maritime Organization(IMO) has been developing the Polar Code to regulate polar shipping. The marine navigation supporting system is essential for ships traveling long distance in the Northern Sea as they are affected by ocean weather and sea-ice. Therefore, to cope with the IMO Polar Code, this research proposes the functional requirements to develop the marine navigation supporting system for the Northern Sea Route. The functional requirements derived from the IMO Polar code consist of arctic voyage risk map, arctic voyage planning and MSI(Marine Safety Information) methods, based on which the navigation supporting system is able to provide dynamic and safe-economical sea route service using the sea-ice observation and prediction technologies. Also, a requirement of the system application is derived to apply the marine navigation supporting system for authorizing ships operating in the Northern Sea. To reflect the proposed system in the Polar Code, continual international exchange and policy proposals are necessary along with the development of sea-ice observation and prediction technologies.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Navigation and Port Research Conference
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• 2013.10a
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• pp.69-70
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• 2013

IPCC (International Panel on Climate Change) reported that the arctic sea-ice extent has been decreased by 2.7% per decades since satellite observations in 1978. The decreased sea-ice extent has gained an international attention due to its economical benefits from the NSR (Northen Sea Route). The NRS - not a clearly defined single route, but a number of alternative routes across the top of Russiahas a 37 % reduction in sailing distance, comparing to the SSR (Southen Sea Route) passing thourgh the Suez Canal. Sailing days are consequently reduced from 30 days to 20 days. Also, it is estimated that the Northen Sea has 20 to 25% of world's oil resources and occupies 40% of the world's fishery production. As Republic of Korea was admitted as an observer to the Arctic Council on May 15, 2013, there has been increasing needs to explore new route in the Northen Sea. In this situation, Korea Institute of Ocean Science & Technology (KIOST) is preparing a plan for the development of Arctic-circle Ocean Environmental Information System to support the ice navigation and resource exploration in the Arctic. We will introduce a conceptual design of a satellite-based ice navigation supporting system for the northern sea route.