The modern-day Ocean Mapping Expedition has been following the same route that Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan took some 500 years ago. Although only one of the original five vessels in the Magellan Expedition returned to Seville, Spain (and the famous explorer did not survive to see it through) it remains a major human achievement. The expedition is looking into four key issues – undersea noise pollution, microplastic pollution, coral reefs and greenhouse gases on the surface of the ocean. 

We were particularly interested in the microplastic story, and our hosts Samuel Gardaz of Fondation Pacifique and Pascal Hagmann from Oceaneye wasted no time in explaining what this was all about. The crew have been using a special net and pouch to take surface water samples to measure microplastic pollutants (from 0.3 to 5mm in size). Among them are samples from the Mozambique Channel and the South African coast which have been packaged and sent to the Oceaneye Association in Switzerland for analysis and further study.

After our brief lesson on deck, we joined Pascal in the cosy galley area where the crew and passengers have their meals. He quickly ran us through some slides to illustrate the scale of the problem – notably that the bulk of plastic remains on land and that poor waste management is a major issue. A sobering graph for us South Africans was that our country ranks 11^th on a list of the top 20 countries mismanaging plastic waste (one ahead of India!). 

By the end of our visit, we were all tempted to sign up for a stint aboard (maybe next time…) and better informed about the nature of this scientific research. And we wish the crew and passengers fair winds and a following sea as they set off on the last leg of their journey back to Spain!

The Fleur de Passion will be moored in Quay 6 at the V&A Waterfront (in front of the Table Bay Hotel) until 24 January. Members of the public are welcome to visit between 10am and 6pm (lunch time excluded from 1pm to 2pm). Large groups should pre-book on the website.