"The Wolstein Holmes Fjord where Touler Air Force Base is located is the entrance to the Smith Strait. We passed there early yesterday morning, but the Wolstein Holmes Fjord is too far from our route to see there." Brian's expression showed that he was a little drunk.

"In fact, it was an Arctic expedition base that had existed for a long time. It used to be an Inuit settlement called Ulanmark, where the Inuits lived for hundreds of years. Later, when Danish explorer Krud Rasmussen conducted five Arctic scientific expeditions between 1912 and 1924, it turned it into a trading center and a base for advancement."

"After World War II, a joint Danish meteorological station was established in the region. During the Cold War, the US military began to see the Arctic as the frontline for the Soviet Union. During World War II, the allies had established meteorological stations in Greenland and Canada, but during the Cold War, the United States wanted an air base to intercept bombers from the northeast to the United States and also serve as a refueling point for American long-range bombers. Ulanmark happened to be in the middle of the road between Moscow and New York, so the US government targeted it here."

"At that time, the secret project for building an air force base here was code-named 'Lanjie'. In July 1951, a fleet of 120 containers, 12,000 people and 300,000 tons of cargo arrived in Beixing Bay and immediately began construction of the Tulle Air Force Base. All the Inuits who lived in Ulanmark were moved away. Then, the builders spent two years to build a huge air force base there, which was the Tulle Air Force Base. At that time, the 821st Regiment of the US Air Force was stationed there, which was also called the 821st Base."

Brian drank a glass of wine again, shook his head and continued: "In 1961, the US military established the 12th Space Warning Squadron, which was called the 12th Missile Warning Squadron, which was also stationed at the Tule Air Base. At that time, Tule Air Base was commanded by the US Northeast Air Force Command, Air Defense Command and Strategic Air Force Command. It was not until 1983 that the Air Force Space Command took over Tule Air Base. In 1992, the 12th Missile Warning Squadron was reorganized into the 12th Space Warning Squadron. I served there in 2007 and served there for a total of four years."

Yang Jing asked curiously: "It must be boring to serve there, right?"

Brian smiled and shook his head, "How could it be boring? If it is boring now, it is certain. After all, there are only about 200 American soldiers serving there now, but when I was in service, there were more than 2,000 people there. It is said that when the number of people at the Tule Air Force Base was at its highest, it was as high as more than 10,000. How could it be boring?"

Brian said, reaching out to draw a circle, "You have never been there. Although it is located 1,207 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, the scenery there is also very spectacular. It is the only place on earth where three active glaciers merge together, and Touler is also the northernmost port in the world. The deep water pier is enough to allow the Blue Whale to dock. Also, there is a three-kilometer runway, and there are more than 3,000 flights to and from Touler Air Base every year. Touler Air Base can be said to be the most important military base of the US government in the Arctic! It is actually not boring to serve there at all."

Princess asked curiously: "Is there anything strange about it? For example, what are you doing there? Or is there any high-tech radar or something in that base?"

Brian smiled and shook his head and said, "Sorry, the boss lady, I can't explain the things you consulted. Although I have been retired for seven years, I still have to abide by some confidentiality regulations. I don't want to be chased by the US government for the rest of my life because of saying something that shouldn't be said."

Carl Morris looked at the disappointed look of Princess and said with a smile: "Boss, you don't have to be disappointed. Not to mention you, even those of us who are with Brian all day long, he has never told us some sensitive things in that damn base."

Princess shrugged and said, "Okay, I shouldn't ask about this, I'm just too curious."

Because of this sudden snowstorm, at noon, everyone except the crew on duty, had another lively dinner.

During this boring voyage, it is very necessary to have a dinner party from time to time, which will help alleviate some negative emotions caused by passengers or crew members due to boring voyages.

However, what surprised Yang Jing and the others was that the blizzard came quickly and went very quickly. After everyone had enough food and drink at noon, they suddenly realized that they had seen the sun again outside.

When people pushed open the cabin door and walked out, they found that the blizzard had stopped. A black cloud could be seen in the sky and pressing towards the southeast. Although there were still many clouds in the sky, they were not as scary as before. The sun also showed its head naughtyly and tried hard to contribute its heat to the sea area.

Although the sky cleared, the temperature became very low. Yang Jing looked at the outdoor temperature meter. In just three hours, the temperature dropped sharply from about ten degrees above zero to minus seventeen degrees...

"This is the climate in the polar region, because the rising heating air flow in the entire northern hemisphere will cool down in the Arctic region, and then carry a huge amount of cold to warm areas at low latitudes to supplement the air that rises in the warm areas due to the rising temperature. Therefore, in the polar region, you can often encounter such sudden blizzards. Don't worry, it's summer after all, and if you pay a little attention to this blizzard, it will not cause any catastrophic consequences." Standing in the cockpit, Andri whispered to Yang Jing to explain the blizzard.

Yang Jing smiled bitterly and said, "With you here, I'm not worried about any disastrous consequences. I'm just worried about this speed."

The Blue Whale's speed is now the safest 3 knots, which is more than five kilometers per hour, which is about the same speed as the normal walking speed of a person. From here to Cape Columbia, the northernmost end of Elsmere Island, it is still more than 500 kilometers. If you continue to sail at this speed, it will take at least more than four days.

Andrei smiled and said, "Don't worry, this temperature cannot last for a long time. You have never been to the Polar Land, so you may not understand some situations. I have to go to the Antarctic or the Arctic twice a year, so I still know this polar climate. Don't worry, after this cold current passes, the temperature will immediately rise. And I just observed that the cooling of this cold current is not that fierce. If it catches up with the violent cooling, it is not uncommon to drop forty degrees sharply within a few hours. It has dropped less than thirty degrees, which is a normal cooling. Don't worry."

Well, since Andrei said so, Yang Jing had no choice but to believe it. Although this guy has just taken over as the captain of the Blue Whale, he is an old seaman after all, and he has much more experience in this area than himself.

As Andrei judged, at around nine o'clock in the evening, Yang Jing felt that the wind had changed.

The north wind, which was just like a knife, turned silently into the southwest wind after about ten hours of raging, and the outdoor temperature also rose from minus 17 degrees Celsius at noon to minus 6 degrees Celsius.

The most important thing is that the icy situation on the sea surface has not worsened much, and the Blue Whale has now increased its speed to seven knots again.

Time passed quietly. Two days later, when the Blue Whale drilled out of the northernmost section of the Smith Strait, which was only about twenty kilometers wide, the front suddenly became clear.

"The Arctic Ocean is here!" Captain Andre's tone was filled with a hint of excitement. Although the eyes were still white, compared to the narrow strait, this breadth could undoubtedly make people more excited.

"Is this the Arctic Ocean?" Princess asked Captain Andre.

"Yes, there is the real Arctic Ocean ahead. However, the sea water temperature is still a bit low now. If it is August, the ice here will melt and break and reveal the sea water."

"So fast?" Yang Jing was also a little surprised. "The thickness of the ice here is about half a meter now, right? Can the half-meter-thick ice be melted in more than twenty days?"

"No, it's not completely melting." Captain Andrei shook his head with a smile, "Don't forget that we are now on the sea. The sea water under the ice is moving all the time. When the thickness of the ice layer is less than twenty centimeters, there is a high possibility of breaking under the strong fluctuations of the sea water. Once these ice layers break, the melting speed will accelerate."

Yang Jing nodded to express his understanding.

Andre walked to the chart room, compared the chart and looked at it, and said, "Let's go, we have entered the Arctic Ocean now, so we should visit the settlement at the northernmost end of mankind."

"The northernmost settlement?" Gege was stunned for a moment, then said excitedly as if he had thought of something: "Captain Andre, do you mean Alert?"

Captain Andre snapped his fingers and smiled, "That's right, it's the settlement of the northernmost human beings on this planet."

Yang Jing whispered to Princess, "Is that Alett very famous?"

Princess nodded and said, "Of course it is famous. This is the permanent residence at the northernmost point of the world. It is located at 82 degrees and 28 minutes north latitude and is only more than 800 kilometers away from the North Pole."

Yang Jing patted his forehead and exclaimed: "There are people who settled in such a north?"

"It's not a permanent settlement. Alert is just a permanent settlement, but most of the people living there are temporary residences. More than a decade ago, there were five permanent settlers there, but since 2011, no one has permanently settled there. However, there are people there every year, there is a meteorological observatory, a military frontier base and a simple airport, so there are still a few people on duty there every year."
Chapter completed!