STORY: Point Nemo is not for the hydrophobic. No other place is as far from land as the South Pacific spot – 2,688 kilometers to be exact. Participants in the extreme sailing regatta Ocean Race crossed here on Tuesday on their way to Brazil. Charlie Enright, Skipper 11th Hour Racing Team “Crazy. There’s nobody else down here. It’s very clear when you look at the map and see what Point Nemo represents. Basically, that’s how it is when we’re down here at Point Nemo that the closest people to us, aside from our racing competitors, are the people on the International Space Station.” And the sailors have even more in common with the space researchers on the ISS around 400 kilometers above them. On their way through the most remote area on earth, the teams are also working for science. Boris Herrmann, Skipper Team Malizia “It is the first time that ten drifter buoys are systematically set down around the Antarctic in this race. In a zone of the ocean where there are no ships and no weather data without these buoys.” Among other things, the sailors should collect information about climate change and the spread of microplastics. Heather Carswell, Ocean Race Sustainability Spokesperson “Research vessels rarely go there, it’s very expensive and very difficult to get to because it’s so remote. That’s why it’s so important that we provide this data. We’re filling gaps for the scientists, and the more information they have, the more data we give them, the better we can understand the ocean, which means we can better protect it.” At the loneliest spot on earth it wasn’t that dull and empty on Tuesday. The field of sailors was close together, heading for Cape Horn, where the boats are expected on Sunday. The current, third stage is considered the hardest and longest of the entire race.
