India, Jan. 24 -- Scenic Eclipse II, a luxury cruise ship, was stuck in thick ice in the Antarctic Ross Sea by the U.S. Coast Guard's only heavy icebreaking vessel, the USCGC Polar Star, on January 23.

The Australian-owned cruise ship got stuck in ice on January 17 and sent a distress call to the USCGC at 11 p.m., local time, Friday. According to the press release from USCGC, the ship was stuck "eight nautical miles from McMurdo Sound."

The USCGC Polar Star responded to the call, navigated through the ice fields to reach Scenic Eclipse II stuck in ice. Footage acquired by PEOPLE shows Polar Star cutting through thick ice, forming cracks and creating a navigable path to the cruise ship.

Once they reached the cruise ship, Polar Star made...