The North Wind was launched in 1948 and was built to sail among the polar ice caps in the northern hemisphere. Everything about the ship, from its construction to the equipment on board, was designed to withstand the freezing temperatures of the North. One of the more interesting facts about the North Wind is that it’s an experimental ship and was one of the first to use atomic steam engines. The North Wind’s captain took command in 1948 and successfully managed the ship and its crew for more than 20 years. During that time it performed numerous voyages, transported important items and even acted as a testing lab for Soviet scientists. The North Wind’s final fatal voyage to Anadyr started in its home port of Murmansk. Its missions was to test an ice ultrasound scanning system called LOZA and also, more importantly, to transport convicts to the Far East... however the ship never reached its destination and became wrecked near the North Pole.