Published
Video length: 4 min
South Pole: aboard the “Perseverance”, Jean-Louis Etienne’s boat, to study the Southern Ocean
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At 77 years old, Jean-Louis Étienne, the tireless explorer of the poles, embarks on an operation to uncover the secrets of the Southern Ocean, which surrounds Antarctica. A team from France Télévisions was able to board its new boat, “Persévérance”.
Antarctica, the white continent of the South Pole, is in a way the air conditioner of the planet, with its giant ice cap. The Southern Ocean that surrounds it is a huge carbon sink. To uncover its secrets, a team from France Télévisions boarded the “Persévérance”, the new oceanographic sailboat of explorer Jean-Louis Étienne.
Nearly 3°C more in 50 years
The Antarctic Peninsula is, in places, still little known. The boat has an on-board laboratory to study currents, winds and the composition of sea water. On the deck of the boat, when the mist rises, the crew records data to analyze the quality of the water. air and the transparency of the atmosphere. For Jean-Louis Étienne, this scientific work should make it possible to alert and raise awareness to better protect the southern region. Antarctica plays a role as a regulator of the climate machine, but it is suffering the consequences of warming. The temperature there has increased by almost 3°C in 50 years.
