A helicopter carrying rescue workers sent to evacuate the passengers of Russian ship Akademik Shokalskiy, which has been trapped in Antarctic ice since Christmas Eve, prepares to land at Commonwealth Bay in East Antarctica, 100 nautical miles (185 km) east of French Antarctic station Dumont D'Urville and about 1,500 nautical miles (2,800km) south of Australia's southern island state of Tasmania, in this still image taken from video shot by expedition leader Chris Turney, professor of Climate Change at the University of New South Wales, on Jan 2, 2014. The Chinese helicopter has reached a Russian ship stranded in Antarctica for nine days and is beginning to pick up 52 passengers who spent Christmas and the New Year trapped in ice, Turney said on Thursday. [Photo/Agencies]