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CountdOwn to POlarquest2021
The Polarquest team prepares to set sail on a scientific exploration of Svalbard and the Arctic ocean.
Their mission: to study the impact of climate change in this sensitive area of the planet and to encourage people to save the white.
About the mission
Live Tracker
Views from our expedition circumnavigating Svalbard
Mission Launch from Longyearbyen
Exploring the highest latitudes
About the expedition
Polarquest2021 is an Arctic research expedition to the Svalbard Archipelago scheduled to set sail in summer 2021. The Polarquest Association has partnered with Arctic Sail Expeditions-Italia for the organization of this expedition.
We will carry out valuable scientific investigation and communicate about the global catastrophe in progress in the Arctic. Polarquest2021 will build upon the ethos of our pioneering 2018 expedition, with research carried out using technologies that are lightweight, low-cost and – most critically – with a low environmental impact. The expedition will be carried out on board the record-breaking Best Explorer.
Our record-breaking results
On board: Best Explorer
The expedition will be carried out on board 51ft S.Y. Best Explorer, currently wintering in Tromsø, Norway. Best Explorer is a Steel Cutter with mobile central board. The record-breaking Best Explorer is the first Italian sailboat to sail the Northwest passage along the classical Amundsen route, sailing 140 days from Norway to Alaska for 8,200 nautical miles, 5000 of which were above the polar circle. Later Best Explorer became the first Italian sailboat to circumnavigate the Arctic sailing north of Siberia from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to Tromsø and the second ever to do it clockwise.
The Best Explorer crew have experience with scientific research. In 2019, during their wold cruise, they tested scientific equipment for the research institutes ENEA and ISPRA, taking samples and analysing sea plankton to calibrate satellite data. Skipper Nanni Acquarone is a real sea wolf, with 55 years of sailing experience including a world tour of 50,000 nautical miles.
In 2019 Best Explorer was the second boat in the world to circumnavigate the Arctic clockwise.
Latest News
Crossing the Barents Sea: Expedition Dispatch
The Polarquest2021 crew is currently crossing the Barents sea en route to Svalbard.
Follow Best Explorer – Live!
Keep track of the Polarquest2021 expedition by following our live tracker!
Polarquest returns to the Arctic with a new scientific expedition
Polarquest2021 has cast off from the port of Tromsø, setting sail to Svalbard for a new scientific expedition.
our Research
Scientific projects of polarquest2021
SONAR Project
Carrying out detailed cartography & measuring greenhouse gases.
E-DNA
Collect non-invasive e-DNA samples from Svalbard fjords.
Driftwood Sampling
Study accumulation dynamics of the driftwood.
Drone Mapping
Document the environmental status of uninhabited areas.
Our Partners & Sponsors
