“The explorer of the extreme” will embark on a most perilous journey. Alban Michon, explorer of the polar zones, is preparing to spend six months in the Arctic… under the ice floe. It is inside a life base resembling a space shuttle that man plans to take up this challenge. The one who has just released a book called The school of explorersa manual for the general public that recounts the differences between his adventures, aims to “make a season with the ice, to live with it.”
“At the age of 22, I had an ice diving school in Tignes. For 15 years, I managed this school and by dint of diving under the ice, I found this magical and poetic universe” , justifies Alban Michon at the microphone ofEurope 1 Sportbefore continuing: “This mission is the adventure of my life”.
A departure at the end of 2025
It is therefore aboard a capsule that could be reminiscent of that of the ISS in space, that the explorer plans to carry out this extreme adventure. The departure for the Arctic is scheduled for the end of 2025. The capsule, already built, is 24 meters long and 2.30 meters wide. Transportable, modular and scalable, it is an underwater base that will have a lifespan of around 20 years.
“These are modules that fit together, and which can evolve a bit like Legos,” described the instigator of the mission. The cabin will be able to accommodate four people, including climatologists, engineers, or even astronauts for their experience. And why not the Frenchman Thomas Pesquet, at least that’s one of the explorer’s wishes.
A mission to advance science
For this mission, two objectives will be sought. The first is scientific. The second of numerical order. “We want to work on biodiversity”, explains the one who speaks of the capsule as a “research center”. “There is a rapid, brutal change, especially in the Arctic”, alert Alban Michon. And for good reason, the temperature in the Arctic is warming up four times faster than elsewhere in the world.
By going there, the explorer wants to “understand climate change in order to fight against it”. “The Arctic sea ice will disappear in the summer if we do nothing now. There are solutions to avoid these disasters”, he justifies. A mission that will therefore be crucial to better understand the challenges of global warming. With this six-month journey, the ice lover hopes to be able to “move the lines”, he who sees in the ice “a story told”.