( CNN ) -- It may not be comparable to Gilligan 's Island , but the plight of the 74 members of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition , aboard a research ship stuck in ice for more than a week at the bottom of the world , appeared anything but grim as 2014 approached . `` We 're the A , A , E who have traveled far , having fun doing science in Antarctica ! '' a dozen or so of them sang on a video posted on YouTube . `` Lots of snow and lots of ice , lots of penguins , which are very , very nice ! '' The rhyme scheme then fell apart , but the festive mood did not : `` Really good food and company , but a bloody great shame we are still stuck here ! Ice cold , cha cha cha ! Ice cold , cha cha cha ! '' It was not all fun and games aboard the Russian-flagged MV Akademik Shokalskiy . After bad weather led the crew of the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis to suspend efforts to reach the expedition Monday , less than 10 nautical miles short of its goal , more than two dozen of those aboard the research vessel ventured onto the surrounding ice , locked arms and proceeded to stomp on the snow to mark a spot where a helicopter from the Chinese icebreaker Xue Long , or Snow Dragon , can land . The helicopter , which can carry 12 people at a time , is expected to take the ship 's 52 passengers -- including the research team and journalists -- to the Xue Long . The Australian icebreaker that tried unsuccessfully to reach the research vessel will send a barge to pick them up from the Xue Long . The 22 crew members of the Akademik Shokalskiy will stay aboard , the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said . But the timing of the rescue remained uncertain as weather Tuesday remained bad . The failed attempt by the Australian icebreaker followed one by the Xue Long , which made it to within 6 nautical miles of the trapped vessel when its path was blocked by ice . It returned to open water and remained in the area to provide support , said Andrea Hayward-Maher , a spokeswoman for the maritime authority . The Akademik Shokalskiy has not moved since Christmas . Chris Turney , an Australian professor of climate change at the University of New South Wales , told CNN that there are regular briefings on the status of rescue attempts , and in the meantime , people are doing what they can to keep busy . That includes yoga and Spanish classes . The expedition to gauge the effects of climate change on the region began on November 27 . The second and current leg of the trip started on December 8 and was scheduled to conclude with a return to New Zealand on January 4 . The vessel got stuck in the ice 15 days after setting out on the second leg . Turney said the ship was surrounded by ice up to nearly 10 feet ( 3 meters ) thick . It was about 100 nautical miles east of the French base Dumont D'Urville , which is about 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart , Tasmania . On Christmas morning , the ship sent a satellite distress signal . But by New Year 's Eve , those aboard were showing few signs of distress . `` Up in the air , the Chinese came , flew around once and left again ! '' they sang . `` The French dropped by , but could n't get near . Bloody great shame we 're still stuck here ! '' CNN 's Josh Levs and Jamie Crawford contributed to this report .
Some stranded on the Akademik Shokalskiy since then have posted an upbeat message . YouTube video : ` ` Lots of snow and lots of ice , lots of snow , which are very , very nice ! '' ` ` The French dropped by , but could n't get near . Bloody great , we 're still stuck here ! '' A helicopter is waiting to pick up 52 passengers , and the 22 crew members will stay aboard .