Bangladeshi student joins North Pole expedition aboard Russian nuclear icebreaker

A Bangladeshi school student has embarked on a rare scientific expedition to the North Pole aboard Russia's nuclear-powered icebreaker ‘50 Let Pobedy’, joining outstanding students from 21 other countries in the international Icebreaker of Knowledge project supported by Russia's Rosatom state nuclear corporation.

The expedition officially began with a departure ceremony in Murmansk, where Captain Ruslan Sasov ordered the vessel to set sail on its 10-day journey. The route will take participants across the Barents Sea to the geographic North Pole, the Franz Josef Land archipelago, and back to Murmansk.

Representing Bangladesh is Md. Malekul Salehin Prottoy, a Class X student of Rajshahi Cadet College. He earned his place after emerging as one of the winners of the seventh edition of the multi-stage Icebreaker of Knowledge competition, which attracted more than 5,000 students from 22 countries, including Bangladesh, India, China, Brazil, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Turkey and Vietnam.

Expressing his excitement before departure, Prottoy said, "This is a very special day for me. I never imagined I would one day travel to the North Pole. From Bangladesh, the Arctic seems incredibly far away, so I feel immense excitement, joy and gratitude. I am proud to represent my country on this remarkable journey."

Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said, “The Arctic is a place where the most ambitious ideas are born,” adding that the expedition brings together talented young people who will help shape the future through science and technology. He noted that Russia's unique nuclear-powered icebreaker fleet allows students to experience technologies found nowhere else while inspiring them to contribute to scientific progress and environmental protection.