China’s 9th arctic expedition team encountered with three polar bears, believed to be a female with two cubs, during their research at a location inside the arctic circle on August 24, 2018. For safety concerns, the scientists were evacuated back to their expedition ship. In a standoff lasting for around three hours, a helicopter was used to expel the animals in an effort to recover the equipment left behind. Finally, all the equipment and supplies were retrieved and nobody was hurt in the incident.