Habbakuk and the Invention of Pykrete This cut-away section shows the design which was proposed for "Habakkuk", the iceberg aircraft carrier which was intended to replace aircraft carriers of the size of H.M.S. llustrious (from http://jwgibbs.cchem.berkeley.edu/CFGoodeve/habakkuk.html) Urban legends surround the construction of the iceberg ship Habbakuk and the subsequent invention of Pykrete. Several sources claim that a scientist by the name of Geoffrey Pyke dropped a block of ice into Churchill's bath water to convince him of the usefulness of ice as building material for a battle ship. The ship itself was designed to be made from pure ice with some refridgeration to keep it from melting, but the chance discovery of "Pykrete" (a composite material of ice and wood pulp) caused a redesign of the ship and plans for construction were rushed ahead. Experiments conducted by several people over the years proved that the wood pulp is responsible for an increase in strength (Pykrete might or might not split but never scatters like pure ice when hit with a hammer). An additon of only 4% of wood chips could double the strength of the material and increase the shock resistence to that of concrete (Schulson, 1999). However, a decrease in the melting rate as claimed by some seems to be another myth surrounding the material. Construction of the ship was never completed but research on ice as a material for construction continues to this day.