Plankton, concentrated life in a single drop of water

Our Vendée Globe heroes perfectly understand the wind, waves, sea currents and climates of the earth. They remind us that our planet is small, blue, and that the ocean is a common good for humanity. But what they sometimes ignore, like most of us, is that their boats are flying over an abundance of life!
An essential ecosystem...
Sea water is alive. In each litre of water, there are between 10 and 100 billion organisms (there are 7.7 billion humans on earth!), most of them invisible to our eyes. These organisms that float and drift with the ocean currents are called 'plankton'. Together in their aquatic habitat, they form what is called an eco-system, comparable to that of forests or deserts; the 'plankton' ecosystem is gigantic since it extends everywhere there is water, from the poles to the equator, from the surface of the oceans to several kilometres deep.
Today, we know that marine plankton produce about half of the planet's oxygen (O2), that it generates the living matter that feeds visible marine organisms - shellfish, crustaceans, fish, birds, dolphins and whales - and that it plays a fundamental role in regulating the climate and the major ecological balances of our planet.
... and still little is known
Like terrestrial ecosystems, there are all known forms of life in plankton, from viruses to animals, including bacteria, archaea, and protists. It is therefore a truly floating forest, with tens of thousands of species in each place.
And the plankton presents extraordinary specificities. The 'plants' are much smaller than the animals, and for the most part unicellular (bacteria and protists). These unicellular 'plants' are very often able to eat...species of ‘animalgae’ or ‘vegimals’ as it were. Animals are often transparent, gelatinous, with mysterious behaviours. The unicellular organisms, with shapes as magical as they are varied, form a starry sky. And all this small world, still largely unknown, floats and interacts with the sandstone currents.
Plankton around the world
The Vendée Globe represents a superb opportunity to meet, sample, and learn more about life in the seawater. The planetary route crosses contrasting areas, difficult to access, and a dozen oceanic provinces representing at least as many plankton landscapes. Above all, this suspended world still conceals many mysteries. It is urgent today to understand its biodiversity and how it functions because our survival depends on it.
In this 2020-21 edition, as part of a partnership between the IMOCA Class and Plankton Planet, we will discover these plankton landscapes at the pace of the race, with plankton portraits that tell part of the story. For the first time on racing yachts, Sam Davies and Didac Costa will also sample the living plankton aboard their racing yacht! A formidable challenge because plankton life is one of the most fragile. But a challenge that could eventually give a new dimension to the regattas: that of measuring the living ocean and understanding its evolution.
Learn more about plankton here: Plankton Planet
Teams infos
Log from Sam Davies: Cape Horn conditions
Hello, I’m writing this from my bunk where I am wedged in whilst my freeze dried dinner is rehydrating.
•••2021 Two-Boat Racing Schedule Unveiled by 11th Hour Racing Team
NEWPORT, Rhode Island (January 21, 2021) - 11th Hour Racing Team has unveiled the schedule for 2021 revealing the Team anticipates entering two boats into the 2021 IMOCA offshore sailing calendar of races, in the build-u…
•••Championship ranking
01 | ![]() | Boris HERRMANN
SEAEXPLORER - YACHT CLUB DE MONACO | 236 pts | |
02 | ![]() | Fabrice AMEDEO
NEWREST - ART & FENÊTRES | 217 pts | |
03 | ![]() | Jérémie BEYOU
CHARAL | 212 pts | |
04 | ![]() | Samantha DAVIES
INITIATIVES-CŒUR | 208 pts | |
05 | ![]() | Paul MEILHAT | 206 pts | |
06 | ![]() | Kevin ESCOFFIER
PRB | 195 pts | |
07 | ![]() | Yann ELIES | 192 pts | |
07 | ![]() | Charlie DALIN
APIVIA | 192 pts | |
09 | ![]() | Yannick BESTAVEN
MAITRE COQ IV | 187 pts | |
10 | ![]() | Thomas RUYANT
LINKEDOUT | 180 pts | |
11 | ![]() | Vincent RIOU | 157 pts | |
12 | ![]() | Clarisse CRÉMER
BANQUE POPULAIRE X | 150 pts | |
13 | ![]() | Arnaud BOISSIÈRES
LA MIE CÂLINE - ARTISANS ARTIPÔLE | 149 pts | |
14 | ![]() | Damien SEGUIN
GROUPE APICIL | 147 pts | |
15 | ![]() | Giancarlo PEDOTE
PRYSMIAN GROUP | 144 pts | |
16 | ![]() | Nicolas LUNVEN | 131 pts | |
17 | ![]() | Christopher PRATT | 128 pts | |
18 | ![]() | Stéphane LE DIRAISON
TIME FOR OCEANS | 127 pts | |
18 | ![]() | Sébastien SIMON
ARKÉA PAPREC | 127 pts | |
20 | ![]() | Maxime SOREL
V AND B - MAYENNE | 123 pts | |
21 | ![]() | Armel LE CLEAC'H | 114 pts | |
21 | ![]() | Manuel COUSIN
GROUPE SÉTIN | 114 pts | |
23 | ![]() | Alan ROURA
LA FABRIQUE | 111 pts | |
23 | ![]() | Eric PERON | 111 pts | |
25 | ![]() | Louis BURTON
BUREAU VALLÉE 2 | 105 pts | |
26 | ![]() | Pascal BIDEGORRY | 100 pts | |
26 | ![]() | Charlie ENRIGHT
11TH HOUR RACING | 100 pts | |
28 | ![]() | Davy BEAUDART | 97 pts | |
29 | ![]() | Antoine KOCH | 96 pts | |
30 | ![]() | Romain ATTANASIO
PURE - BEST WESTERN® | 92 pts | |
31 | ![]() | Roland JOURDAIN | 91 pts | |
32 | ![]() | Will HARRIS | 86 pts | |
33 | ![]() | Alex THOMSON
HUGO BOSS | 80 pts | |
34 | ![]() | Jean LE CAM
YES WE CAM ! | 68 pts | |
34 | ![]() | Nicolas TROUSSEL
CORUM L'EPARGNE | 68 pts | |
36 | ![]() | Yoann RICHOMME | 65 pts | |
37 | ![]() | Anthony MARCHAND | 64 pts | |
38 | ![]() | Ari HUUSELA
STARK | 60 pts | |
38 | ![]() | Isabelle JOSCHKE
MACSF | 60 pts | |
38 | ![]() | Miranda MERRON
CAMPAGNE DE FRANCE | 60 pts | |
38 | ![]() | Sébastien MARSSET | 60 pts | |
42 | ![]() | Guillaume LE BREC | 56 pts | |
42 | ![]() | Erik NIGON
COMPAGNIE DU LIT / JILITI | 56 pts | |
44 | ![]() | Alexia BARRIER
TSE - 4MYPLANET | 54 pts | |
45 | ![]() | François GUIFFANT | 49 pts | |
46 | ![]() | Xavier MACAIRE | 48 pts | |
47 | ![]() | Sébastien AUDIGANE | 47 pts | |
48 | ![]() | Benjamin DUTREUX
OMIA - WATER FAMILY | 44 pts | |
48 | ![]() | Thomas CARDRIN | 44 pts | |
48 | ![]() | Kojiro SHIRAISHI
DMG MORI GLOBAL ONE | 44 pts | |
51 | ![]() | Gildas MORVAN | 42 pts | |
52 | ![]() | Clément GIRAUD
L'ENVOL | 40 pts | |
53 | ![]() | Pip HARE
MEDALLIA | 38 pts | |
54 | ![]() | Halvard MABIRE | 34 pts | |
55 | ![]() | Joan MULLOY | 32 pts | |
56 | ![]() | Endt YSBRAND | 24 pts | |
57 | ![]() | Gwénolé GAHINET | 18 pts | |
58 | ![]() | Michael FERGUSON | 16 pts | |
58 | ![]() | Alain GAUTIER | 16 pts | |
60 | ![]() | Tolga Ekrem PAMIR | 12 pts | |
61 | ![]() | Stan MASLARD | 10 pts | |
62 | ![]() | Paul LARSEN | 8 pts | |
63 | ![]() | Hiroshi KITADA | 7 pts | |
64 | ![]() | Pierre CASIRAGHI | 6 pts | |
65 | ![]() |
Denis VAN WEYNBERGH
EYESEA.BE | 5 pts | |
66 | ![]() | Armel TRIPON | 4 pts | |
66 | ![]() | Arthur HUBERT | 4 pts | |
66 | ![]() | Richard TOLKIEN | 4 pts | |
66 | ![]() | Rune AASBERG | 4 pts | |
66 | ![]() | Morgan LAGRAVIERE | 4 pts | |
66 | ![]() | Neal MCDONALD | 4 pts | |
72 | ![]() | Lionel REGNIER | 3 pts | |
73 | ![]() | Pierre QUIROGA | 2 pts | |
... |