Meanwhile, the real story of USS Skate.
USS Skate (SSN-578) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Skate was unable to surface precisely at the Pole on the August voyage due to dangerous ice conditions as noted in the captain's 1960 book, "Surface at the Pole: The Extraordinary Voyages of the USS Skate,"[4] where Calvert said, "Seldom had the ice seemed so heavy and so thick as it did in the immediate vicinity of the pole. For days we had searched in vain for a suitable opening to surface in."[5] The closest was to make radio contact at the surface from a polynya around 30 nm away, but not to surface fully owing to the risk of damage from ice.[4] Skate did manage to surface and make contact with Drifting Ice Station Alpha at 85ºN, 300 nm away.[6]
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The video of an open lead was not from the North Pole, but from Drift Station Alpha, 300nm from the pole. That was in August, near ice minimum conditions. Today, at 300 nm from the pole in August, you'd be able to find even more wide open ocean.
USS Skate (SSN-578) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Skate was unable to surface precisely at the Pole on the August voyage due to dangerous ice conditions as noted in the captain's 1960 book, "Surface at the Pole: The Extraordinary Voyages of the USS Skate,"[4] where Calvert said, "Seldom had the ice seemed so heavy and so thick as it did in the immediate vicinity of the pole. For days we had searched in vain for a suitable opening to surface in."[5] The closest was to make radio contact at the surface from a polynya around 30 nm away, but not to surface fully owing to the risk of damage from ice.[4] Skate did manage to surface and make contact with Drifting Ice Station Alpha at 85ºN, 300 nm away.[6]
---
The video of an open lead was not from the North Pole, but from Drift Station Alpha, 300nm from the pole. That was in August, near ice minimum conditions. Today, at 300 nm from the pole in August, you'd be able to find even more wide open ocean.
