The very next mission of Monaco Explorations in the Western Indian Ocean is part of the principality's commitment to safeguarding and sustainable management of the ocean. First element of the Monaco Explorations project, the mission will take place from October to November between Reunion, Mauritius and Seychelles, aboard the South African oceanographic and supply ship S.A. Needles II.
The S.A.. Agulhas II leaves its home port of Cape Town in South Africa on October 3, 2022 with a first contingent of around fifteen scientists and technicians. They will be joined a few days later in Mauritius, then to Reunion, by other teams for a total workforce of around a hundred people : scientists, young researchers and students from an embedded school, filmmakers and photographers, divers, artistes, auteurs, communicants, etc. In the program : four stairs, a journey of approximately 7,300 nautical miles (13 500 km) and two months of navigation punctuated and punctuated by the various research and field operations programmed throughout the boat's journey and during the stations planned around the Aldabra atoll, on the Saya de Malha bench, where 15 days of investigations are planned. Likewise then around the island of Saint-Brandon. Guided by an international steering committee made up of fourteen experts under the chairmanship of Carl Gustaf Lundin (CEO of Mission Blue, previously senior scientist of the IUCN marine and polar program), the mission implements an approach based on a multidisciplinary program including natural and social sciences.
Seven research projects
The scientific program implemented by international teams is structured around the study of two well-identified maritime areas. : the Saya de Malha bank and a selection of islands, even seamounts, located on the mission route. This program is guided by the four main themes of Monaco Explorations : coral protection, protection of megafauna, marine protected areas and new exploration techniques. It aims to meet as a priority the needs of the governments of Seychelles and Mauritius, while ensuring good coordination with relevant international and regional bodies and initiatives. The objective of the mission is also to promote the content, knowledge and resources resulting from this operation, by promoting the exchange and transmission of knowledge with as many people as possible, through a varied mediation program which will be aimed at a wide audience, to civil society actors and decision-makers.
Science, engagement and diplomacy
In the context of diplomatic relations, the mission will be coordinated with an official trip to the region of Prince Albert II of Monaco, scheduled between October 20 and 27, 2022. Other official activities of the sovereign of the principality of Monaco, notably his interventions in various forums dealing with the protection of the ocean, will be able to illustrate the political dimension of this mission. Monaco Explorations are a platform serving Prince Albert II’s commitment to knowledge, sustainable management and protection of the ocean. Created at the initiative of the government of the Principality of Monaco, they associate the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, the Oceanographic Institute, the Monaco Scientific Center and the Monaco Yacht Club.
Olivier Soufflet
