A helicopter is set to rescue 52 passengers and four crew members on a Russian ship stranded in the Antarctic after earlier attempts to free them were hampered by bad weather.<br /><br />Scientific research vessel Akademik Shokalskiy has been stuck in sea ice off the coast of Antarctica – 185 kilometres east of Dumont D’Urville – since Christmas Day.<br /><br />The ship is carrying 74 people, including scientists, tourists and crew. They are said to be in good spirits with ample food supplies.<br /><br />Russia said on Monday Chinese ship the Snow Dragon would send a helicopter. It had attempted a rescue by sea, but this was halted due to thick ice. A similar attempt by Australian icebreaker The Aurora Australis was also thwarted because of blizzards.<br /><br />The trapped passengers originally planned to trace the journey Australian explorer Douglas Mawson took a hundred years ago.
