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“The ocean is the last continent left to be explored”

Françoise Gaill, marine organism specialist, CNRS

Prince Albert I of Monaco (1848-1922)

Prince Albert I was just 22 years old when he became
interested in oceanographic exploration.
The Monaco Explorations perpetuates the Princi-
pality’s grand oceanographic tradition initiated by The so-called “Sailor Prince” sailed the seas aboard
Prince Albert I in the late 19 century. The Sovereign the ships l’Hirondelle or La Princesse Alice, which, like
th
expressed his emotion at taking up the torch of
his illustrious ancestor, whose nickname was “the the Yersin, were conceived for scientific research.
sailor prince.” Over the next three years, dozens
of researchers will take turns on the ecological
research ship Yersin, sailing over the Atlantic from He initiated and participated in the world’s first
Madeira to Cape Verde, on to the Caribbean, oceanographic and cartographic expeditions as the
the Pacific, the Indian Ocean and the Black Sea
before heading back to the Mediterranean. The founder of modern oceanography. He created the
Yersin will return to Monaco, its port of origin, in Oceanographic Institutes of Paris and of Monaco, and
2020 (see expedition map next page).
Monaco’s Oceanographic Museum.
This coming August, the Yersin will set sail for
Macaronesia, the area around the archipelagos
of Madeira and Cape Verde. This destination is
no coincidence, as it was explored 120 years ago
by Prince Albert I. Researchers will compare the
biodiversity they encounter with the observations
recorded in Monaco’s archives.