The Russian Yamal nuclear icebreaker was recently captained for the first time by a woman, Marina Starovoitova.
Marina, who was appointed by Alexander Barinov, President Emeritus of the Murmansk Atomflot veteran organization, took command at a brief but colourful ceremony.
She captained the nuclear icebreaker on an expedition that carried approximately sixty-six schoolchildren from twenty-one countries across the world, including Ghana. The voyage followed a route from Murmansk, through the North Pole, to Franz Josef Land, and back to Murmansk.
“To be a captain is to carry on the nuclear fleet traditions, to cherish the crew and the icebreaker. That’s where I see my biggest mission. I’ll undertake it every day. And I very much hope that I will succeed and justify your trust and the trust of my colleagues,” said Marina Starovoitova.
Marina Starovoitova, a graduate of Bryansk State University, was teaching Russian language and literature in the middle classes of a rural school when her acquaintances from the Arctic region told her that the Murmansk Shipping Company was recruiting women to join a ship’s crew.
Marina graduated from the Admiral S.O. Makarov State Maritime Academy, specializing as a navigation engineer. By now, she has been working at sea for more than 20 years, six of them in the nuclear fleet. She rose through the ranks from a sailor to Senior Assistant Captain.
She is a holder of a Certificate of Merit of Rosatom State Corporation, letter of gratitude of the Russian President and other professional awards.
In 2025, the Russian nuclear industry celebrates its 80th anniversary.
On August 20, 1945, the Special Committee on the Utilization of Atomic Energy was established — this date is considered the birthday of the industry.
The anniversary year is defined by three words: pride, inspiration, dreaming. This motto reflects the key values of the nuclear industry: pride for the feat of the founding scientists and engineers, inspiration from the achievements and top performance of the past decades, dreaming as a reference point for the future, aspiration for new discoveries and technologies.
On August 20, 2025, a large-scale gala event Era of Dreamers was held at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.
The festive evening brought together about 30,000 spectators, including more than 20,000 employees of Rosatom enterprises.
Icebreaker escort is organized to ensure safe navigation along the Northern Sea Route.
Russia is the only country in the world with a nuclear icebreaker fleet.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
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