A look at the conditions as SD 1020 rounded Cape Horn mid-march (early fall): Wind speeds into the high 30s (knots), waves over five meters (16.5 feet), sailing at a speed over ground of more than seven knots (eight miles per hour). SD 1020 is currently southwest of the horn of Africa, at approximately 10°W. Most ship-based Antarctica voyages generally spend 4–6 days making shore excursions on the Antarctic Peninsula. On our sailing expedition, you'll have up to 10 days (depending on weather) to explore remote coves, beaches and icebound headlands, generally on our own and away from the crowds that are inevitable with larger ships. And, because.
The 2019 Saildrone Antarctic Circumnavigation marked 100 days in the Southern Ocean on April 29. SD 1020 has sailed more than 7,300 nautical miles since launching from Point Bluff, New Zealand, on January 19.The challenge of completing the first autonomous circumnavigation of the Southern Ocean is not only the distance—15,000 nautical miles—but the Storms are fast-moving and frequent, and icebergs and abound.
The Antarctic Circumpolar Current moves up to 150 million cubic meters of water per second (750 times the Amazon River), and whales and marine debris are a constant threat.Shortly after leaving New Zealand, the fleet was hit by a series of storms with gusts over 60 knots. SD 1022 suffered damage and had to return to port for repairs; the saildrone is expected to relaunch this spring.
SD 1020 survived the storm, surfing giant waves and The first major mission milestone occurred five weeks into the mission when SD 1020 crossed 60°S and officially entered the Antarctic Region. In mid-March, SD 1020 completed the first autonomous circumnavigation of Cape Horn.. Icebergs spotted by SD 1020 in the Southern Ocean.On April 5, SD 1020 was navigating through “Iceberg Alley” just east of Drake Passage when it made contact with an iceberg. The incident damaged some of the atmospheric sensors and the onboard cameras, but the rest of its science and navigational sensors continue to function normally.
As winter approaches, the saildrone will stay slightly further north to take advantage of the available daylight and avoid icebergs.One of the key aspects of this mission is to perform to quantify carbon uptake in the Southern Ocean. The Saildrone sensor suite includes an ASVCO2 sensor to measure atmospheric carbon dioxide; SOCCOM floats measure water pH to infer partial pressure of CO2. SD 1020 has completed two successful rendezvouses and is heading toward a third.carry up to 20 science sensors to record meteorological and oceanographic observations above and below the sea surface.
SD 1020 is equipped with an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), which uses sound to measure ocean currents. SD 1022 and SD 1023 are equipped with echo sounders to survey and study the both of which are indicators of the changing climate in Antarctica.“We’re incredibly pleased with how SD 1020 has been faring given the extreme conditions it’s experienced—it’s really above expectations. It hasn’t been easy going, but we’ve learned a lot. Two additional saildrones are scheduled for relaunch in the coming weeks, but this will mean they round Cape Horn in the depths of winter. That’s about as harsh as it gets in the ocean, but we’re looking forward to the challenge!” said Saildrone founder and CEO Richard Jenkins.. A look at the conditions as SD 1020 rounded Cape Horn mid-march (early fall): Wind speeds into the high 30s (knots), waves over five meters (16.5 feet), sailing at a speed over ground of more than seven knots (eight miles per hour).SD 1020 is currently southwest of the horn of Africa, at approximately 10°W. The next significant milestones of the mission will be crossing the prime meridian (0°) and then entering the Indian Ocean (20°E).
SD 1022 and SD 1023 are expected to deploy from Point Bluff in late spring (late fall in the southern hemisphere). A global science collaborationThe Antarctic remains one of the planet’s least explored regions because of its severe conditions and the high cost of exploration. The mission track traverses areas rarely visited by vessels, which means scientists normally don’t have the means to collect essential data related to the marine ecosystem and the global climate.The 2019 Antarctic Circumnavigation is generously supported by the Li Ka Shing Foundation. Researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, and Palmer Long Term Ecological Research are among the mission’s science collaborators.
Several additional science collaborators have joined the mission as it continues including the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), the Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI), the University of Exeter, and Aker Biomarine/NORCE. In total, science organizations in some eight countries are providing inputs into mission operations and will use the data to further a variety of scientific goals. Bringing Antarctica to the classroomCutting-edge Saildrone technology can be used to expose future generations to the rapid changes taking place in the Antarctic by bringing data-driven lessons to classrooms around the world. Saildrone has partnered with the 1851 Trust, a UK-based education charity that teaches young people about science, technology, and engineering through sailing, to develop a series of STEM-oriented lesson plans, available to teachers free of charge.Download the lesson plans, follow the mission updates, explore the interactive mission map, and read science-focused blog posts inspired by climate issues in the Antarctic region at.
Procyab Getty Images/iStockphotoMiles away from anything that's even remotely familiar to most travelers, these 10 secret edge-of-the-world vacations are the types of fantastic, faraway places you never thought you'd make it to. They're extreme destinations that inspire soul-searching as you stand at Earth's outermost reaches and stare into the never-ending abyss of a new frontier. Read on for a roundup of remote adventures that involve mountains, deserts, icy tundra, and other uninhabitable conditions ripe for your next rite of passage.Fogo Island, Newfoundland, CanadaYou don't have to go to extreme lengths or great expense to arrive at the edge. According to the Flat Earth Society, one of the four corners of the globe is across the border in Canada.
Fogo Island, an isolated eastern annex of the already remote Newfoundland, juts so far into the North Atlantic that it practically neighbors Greenland. Here, currents sweep past the craggy coast, carrying majestic chunks of blue ice and migrating humpback whales. Along untouched stretches, you can find the odd avant-garde studio, part of the local Shorefast Foundation's international artist-residency program.How to Experience the Edge: Hike the steep trail to Brimstone Head, one of the four corners, or go cod fishing in the North Atlantic.
Travel reporter Laura Bly suggests the new five-star Fogo Island Inn (see slideshow above), a starkly modern hotel set on the granite shoreline.Getting There: From Newfoundland's Gander International Airport, it's an hour's drive and a 50-minute ferry ride from the appropriately named town of Farewell to the island.Mt. Aspiring National Park, South Island, New ZealandUntouched and remote, this national park on New Zealand's South Island is so striking, so otherworldly that it was the set for The Lord of the Rings movies. Aspiring National Park, where civilization as you know it ends and Middle-Earth fantasy begins, aquamarine ice edges ancient glaciers on mountains. Rocky landscapes are like sculptures. And glowing green moss droplets blanket dense forests.
It's the edge of a completely uninhabited, epic landscape.How to Experience the Edge: Heli-hike, heli-ski, rock climb, ice climb, or mountaineer. Guided hikes to glaciers and jet-boat rides take you deep into the park, to places you never knew existed.Getting There: Fly into Auckland and connect to Queenstown on South Island.
You can hitch a ride with an alpine helicopter pilot and fly over the Crown Range and Pisa Mountains, or drive through them to get to the village of Wanaka. From there, you can fly, walk, or boat into the park.North Cape, Finnmark, NorwayIf you're looking at a globe, Norway's North Cape sits near the very top, overlooking the Arctic Ocean. Snapping a photo here at the spot dubbed 'The Top of the World' is a rite of passage among European road trippers, especially motorcyclists and RVers striving for the continent's northern reaches. When they finally arrive, they celebrate. Recycling bins full of empty champagne bottles are the evidence.How to Experience the Edge: Stand at the edge of the North Cape plateau, about 1,000 feet above the Arctic Ocean, where churning water and endless skies stretch as far as the eye can see. Roaming herds of reindeer, the summer's midnight sun, and the northern lights are other reminders that you've entered a new frontier.Getting There: Since there are no international airports in northern Norway, the 'shortcut' is a six-day cruise (12 days round-trip) with Hurtigruten ASA, a 120-year-old freight-and-passenger shipping company.
During the voyage from Honningsvag, you cross the Arctic Circle before disembarking and taking a motor coach to the North Cape.Makgadikgadi Pan, BotswanaA stark, eerie, and vast salt flat—one of the world's largest—was left behind thousands of years ago when a superlake dried up here in the Kalahari Desert. No vegetation can grow on this pan the size of Switzerland, and very little wildlife can exist here during the harsh, dry season of unrelenting hot winds. The sheer emptiness of the hauntingly featureless terrain seems to stretch to eternity on the Makgadikgadi Pan.How to Experience the Edge: On tour operator Africa Exclusive's Jack's Camp tours, stay in a luxury tent on the desolate salt flat, or quad-bike across the cracked landscape for a few days then sleep out on a bedroll.
Take a guided safari to learn about the desert-adapted fauna and flora, and walk with San Bushmen who can show you how to survive in this harsh environment. You might even find fossils of the giant hippo or zebra.Getting There: Fly into Johannesburg and catch a connecting flight to Maun, where you can take a light aircraft into the pan.Ilulissat, Qaasuitsup, GreenlandIn Greenland, the world's least populated country, there are no roads between any of the towns, leaving your transport options to boat, plane, helicopter, or dogsled. It's one of the world's most inhospitable places, where larger boats can navigate for only part of the year and where the growing season isn't long enough for fruits and vegetables. Fly into the isolated west coast town of Ilulissat or the nearby Saqqaq village, where each year, billions of tons of icebergs more than 300 feet tall calve off and glide out of the fjord.How to Experience the Edge: 'Hiking during the summer is more akin to hiking on the moon,' says traveler Elliot Gillies. Sailing among icebergs and taking helicopter trips to the ice sheet are other popular summer activities. In winter, take a dogsled trip.Getting There: Most flights from North America connect through Copenhagen or Reykjavik.
No ferries run to Greenland, but the country is a stop on many cruise itineraries.Mt. Kailash, Himalayas, TibetThis Himalayan mountain may not be the globe's highest point, but many religions revere it as the meeting place of heaven and Earth. Each year, thousands pilgrimage through the remote villages of Tibet's High Plateau and around Mt. A holy ritual, the trek at the edge of heaven is said to bring good fortune, and many travelers call the encounter life changing.How to Experience the Edge: Soma Journeys leads a Mt. Kailash trek that explores Buddhist traditions along the way, with meditation in caves and visits to monasteries. Tour operator In the Saddle's Tibet horseback-riding trip gives you the chance to meet nomads and monks on the isolated grasslands of one of Earth's highest plateaus that stretches as far as the eye can see.Getting There: Soma Journeys' Mt.
Kailash trip starts in Kathmandu, Nepal, where you can take two small airplanes into the plateau region for the hike. In the Saddle's trip begins in Chengdu, China.Bunda Cliffs, Nullarbor Plain, AustraliaAt the edge of the world in southern Australia, great white sharks occasionally swim in the ocean below the imposing precipice of the Bunda Cliffs, which reach heights up to 393 feet and stretch on for 62 miles. It's not much kinder or gentler up on the cliff top, the biggest single slab of limestone in the world. This remote, treeless, and arid Nullarbor Plain is nearly the size of the United Kingdom, but making the drive is the ultimate Aussie road trip.How to Experience the Edge: Follow the signs to one of the five main lookouts on gravel roads that lead from the Eyre Highway.
In winter at the eastern lookout, watch migrating southern right whales mating and calving by the shore. Nearby, you can also go cage diving with sharks or swim with dolphins and sea lions.Getting There: Check out Tourism Australia's six-day, 1,242-mile driving itinerary. Or take the Indian Pacific train on a track that claims the record for the longest, straightest section on the planet (about 310 miles).Tierra Del Fuego, Patagonia, ArgentinaThe small town of Ushuaia in the Tierra del Fuego archipelago is Argentina's last outpost at the end of the Pan-American Highway. Here, trees are stunted and twisted by extreme weather, and everything in town feels permanently battened down.
There's nothing but miles and miles of water between you and the frozen loneliness of Antarctica.How to Experience the Edge: You can snap your photo by the sign in the archipelago's national park that marks the end of the Pan-American Highway, which runs to Alaska. But to get the real edge-of-the-world feeling, take a boat ride to Cape Horn, where circumnavigating ships used to sail before the Panama Canal opened. Real World Holidays' Encompass Argentina trip includes sea kayaking or canoeing among the farthest-flung islands so you can have the edge of the world all to yourself.Getting There: Fly to Ushuaia, the world's southernmost city, from Buenos Aires, then head into Tierra del Fuego National Park by jeep or small boat.AntarcticaAt the world's southern tip, Antarctica has no buildings apart from the occasional abandoned scientific station. There are no roads or tracks, no power lines, no permanent inhabitants—nothing. It's a continent that is 98 percent covered by ice that averages at least a mile in thickness.
But the magnitude of wildlife that is here, among intricately carved icebergs and giant glaciers, seems impossible, like a forgotten paradise.How to Experience the Edge: Glide through the waters of a glacial fjord in a small Aurora Expeditions ship dwarfed by ice-clad peaks on every side. Ride in an open-air zodiac to see penguins, whales, and elephant seals, or put on snorkel or dive gear and see them among the icebergs below the water's surface. Overland treks and on-ice camping are other options.Getting There: Large cruise ships and smaller expedition ships sail from South America. Trips take about two days of sailing or two hours of flying.Kamchatka, Siberia, RussiaEight time zones east of Moscow is a massive swath of unpopulated Siberian wilderness and one of the most active volcanic regions in the world. Kamchatka also happens to be home to roads potholed beyond repair, cities that feel post-apocalyptic, and crumbling old Soviet military bases with rusting fighter jets.
At the edge of the capital city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, smoking volcanoes dominate the horizon, threatening to destroy what's left of this civilization. But the scenery is stunning and unspoiled in this portion of the Pacific Ring of Fire.How to Experience the Edge: Trekking is the best way to feel like you are in the middle of nowhere. Secret Compass and 56th Parallel are two expedition companies that can take you to the volcanic peaks and introduce you to Siberian culture and traditions en route. There's also heli-skiing, fishing, rafting, and bear watching—the area has one of the highest concentrations of brown bears in the world.Getting There: In summer, you can fly direct from Anchorage to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Most year-round regular service runs through Moscow.