USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10) escorts motor vessel Stena Polaris through the ice-covered Ross Sea to McMurdo Station during Operation Deep Freeze 2026 [Image 15 of 18]

ANTARCTICA

01.21.2026

Courtesy Photo

U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area

USCGC Polar Star cuts a navigable channel through the ice-covered Ross Sea as the cutter escorts the largest fuel tanker ever to reach McMurdo Station during Operation Deep Freeze 2026, Jan. 21, 2026. Pacific Air Forces operates on a 24-hour basis to provide the U.S. National Science Foundation complete joint operational and logistic support for Operation Deep Freeze. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Ensign Madelyn Greene)

• Date Taken: 01.21.2026
• Date Posted: 01.29.2026 13:50
• Photo ID: 9498622
• VIRIN: 260121-O-G0200-4746
• Resolution: 2400x1406
• Size: 738.27 KB
• Location: AQ