The Russian research ship had been stuck in the ice field since Christmas Eve.

A shift in wind direction has freed a Russian-built research ship and a Chinese icebreaker that were both stuck trapped in Antarctic ice fields, according to Russian news media. The Akademik Shokalskiy research ship got stuck Dec 24, forcing the evacuation of 52 passengers by helicopter last week, while the 22 crew members remained on board. The helicopter had been dispatched by the Chinese icebreaker Xue Long (Snow Dragon), and its crew of 101, which itself got stuck in an attempt to reach the Russian vessel. The rescue passengers were flown to the Australian icebreaker, the Aurora Australis. Yury Volgov, director of the Far-Eastern Hydrometeorology Research Institute, which owns the 233-foot Russian ship, told reporters Tuesday that a change in wind direction from easterly to northwesterly cause a shift in the direction of the ice drift, opening up an escape route, RT newsreports. Ship captain Igor Kiselyov said the vessel, which got trapped in the ice 1,500 nautical miles (1,726 statute miles) south of Hobart, Australia, soon may escape the clutches of the ice field altogether, the Russian news agency reports. "We are sailing at low speed, changing courses," the captain said, according to Itar-Tass news agency." We've traveled 20 miles so far. It's difficult so far, with dense fog and visibility no further than 500 meters. But the ice is thinner and broken here, so we're moving." The Snow Dragon, which had been blocked by a half-mile iceberg, has already reached ice free waters, the official Xinhua news agency reports. The agency reported from the vessel that it escaped after making a 100-degree turn and pushing away the ice, thereby splitting it and opening up a channel of water. The Polar Star, the U.S. Coast Guard's only active heavy polar icebreaker, was enroute to the area and was expected to arrive at the end of the week. American vessel the Polar Star, the US Coast Guard's only active heavy polar icebreaker, was sent to the rescue as well and is expected to arrive at the end of this week.