Jeanneau owner Andreas B. Heide has embarked on yet another expedition to the high Arctic aboard his Sun Fast 37, Barba. This year's expedition, Arctic Sense 2023, builds upon the work of Arctic Sense 2021 and will once again find Barba and her crew sailing and exploring the remote areas of Svalbard. Located just about midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, Svalbard is considered to be one of the world’s northernmost inhabited areas and is home to a wide variety of arctic wildlife, including polar bears, walruses, seals, arctic foxes, reindeer, and whales. However, as beautiful and unspoiled as Svalbard is, Svalbard is drastically feeling the effects of a changing climate. It is these changes that Andreas and his crew have once again come to study and document.
Photo Credit: Tord Karlsen-barba.no
Over the course of the 10-week Arctic Sense Mission, Barba and her crew will cover in excess of 2,000 nautical miles sailing the Norwegian Sea between Barba’s homeport of Stavanger, Tromsø, and the archipelago of Svalbard. Along the way, they will likely encounter several populations of whales, many of them once hunted to near extinction, including Blue Whales, Sperm Whales. and Greenlandic Whales. Once Barba reaches the pack ice around Svalbard, the team will be on the lookout for polar bears with newly born cubs. Polar Bears have especially been hit hard due to diminishing food sources brought about by the warming climate and the melting ice. The team will also document the amount of plastic they come across that has been washed ashore and can, unfortunately, be found all along the coast of Svalbard.
At Jeanneau, due to the very nature of our business, we depend on the health of the world’s oceans and our lakes and rivers. Because of this, we applaud Andreas's work and are excited to continue our partnership with him and proud to sponsor S/V Barba and Arctic Sense 2023.
Stay up to date on all that’s going on by following the Arctic Sense Mission and all of Barba’s adventures on Facebook and Instagram. You will be glad that you did!