In 1926, when Umberto Nobile crossed the Arctic via the North Pole, aboard the Norge airship that he designed himself, he became the first man in the world to undertake this crossing. It was an exploit that many would subsequently attempt to repeat. For, behind the idea of exploring our planet’s last latitudes, there lies the prospect of raising our spirit, of matching our thirst for the unknown with our deep desire to gain a greater understanding of the world in which we live.
Le Commandant Charcot, a ship of scientific opportunity, follows in the tradition of Nobile, a pioneer and a tireless architect of polar discovery, in order to discover some of the Arctic’s secrets during a dedicated research mission at the highest point of the north.
Expedition Highlights
• Attempt to reach the Magnetic North Pole.
• Aboard Le Commandant Charcot, a polar exploration vessel opening to the exterior, take time to immerse yourself in unique moments of exploration and observation, in the silence and respect of fragile landscapes and biodiversity.
• At this time of the year and depending on the opportunities provided by the weather conditions, the possibility of observing the phenomenon of the Northern Lights near the Bering Strait.
• Enjoy the unique experience of sailing through the heart of the ice floe and discover the endless variety of forms and states of the ice.
• Exploration of Svalbard, from Europe’s largest ice cap on Nordaustlandet (North East Land) in the Søraust-Svalbard Nature Reserve, the second-largest protected area in Norway.
• The landscapes: alpine reliefs, icy shores, ice floes. In Svalbard: mountains patterned with multi-coloured strata, fjords, jagged mountains, glaciers, icebergs, ice floes, sheer cliffs, polar ice cap, wild tundra.
The wildlife: polar bears, walruses, Arctic foxes, Svalbard reindeer, whales, sea birds.
• Brand-new activities: kayaking, hiking or snowshoeing, polar plunge.