The Bulgarian research vessel will set sail for Antarctica on December 27

The first Bulgarian military research ship will set off from Varna to Antarctica on December 27, said the head of the 31st expedition to the coldest Continent Prof. Hristo Pimpirev. He stressed that with this voyage we will prove to the world that we are a maritime nation.

The captain of the vessel, Captain second rank Nikolai Danailov, added that the crew consisted of 26 people, including three cadets from the Varna Maritime University. The voyage is expected to last four months, BTA reported on December 21.

The Bulgarian research ship "St. St. Cyril and Methodius" has been preparing for the voyage to the Icy Continent since the end of last year. In order to participate in the expedition, the ship's captain Nikolai Danailov had a special training in Argentina to learn everything he needed to sail in extreme conditions.

"The first course was an introduction to documents concerning polar navigation and sailing in icy conditions, and the second course was practically oriented," Captain second rank Nikolai Danailov told BNT. Sailing in ice conditions and protecting the ship from icing are some of the main challenges in such voyage.

The vessel will deliver important cargo and equipment to the Bulgarian base on Livingstone Island. It will help build a science laboratory for the Bulgarian polar explorers so that fully fruitful and high quality polar research can be carried out.