For almost two years, Robert Brewin collected data from the bow of a superyacht as it sailed pristine waters from the Caribbean Sea to the Antarctic Ocean. The Archimedes, a 222foot "adventure" yacht then owned by the late hedge funder James Simons, boasts a gym, a jacuzzi and an elevator. But between 2018 and 2020, Brewin was concerned only with the boat's Sea-Bird Scientific Solar Tracking Aiming System, installed to measure light reflecting off of the water.
A senior lecturer at the UK's University of Exeter, Brewin and his colleagues were analyzing microplankton — microscopic organisms at the base of the marine food chain — by studying the ocean's color. The Sea-Bird's readouts helped them verify satellite imagery. Brewin's was not your typical superyacht itinerary, but he is one of hundreds of scientists to have used an adventure yacht — also known as expedition or explorer yachts — to conduct research on the ocean.
In a paper published in January, Brewin and his co-authors touted the potential of "harnessing superyachts" for science, concluding that "reaching out to wealthy citizen scientists may help fill (research capability) gaps." It's a view shared — and being pushed — by the Yacht Club of Monaco and the Explorers Club, a New York City-based organization focused on exploration and science. In March, the groups co-hosted an environmental symposium that included an awards ceremony for yacht owners who "stand out for their commitment to protecting the marine environment.
" The Archimedes won a "Science & Discovery" award. "If a yacht is operating 365 days a year, rather than having it sit idle it'd be much better for it to contribute a positive return through science and conservation," says Rob McCallum, an Explorers Club fellow and founder of US-based EYOS Expeditions, which runs adventure yacht voyages. EYOS charters yachts from private owners for its excursions, and is a founding member of Yachts for Science, a four-year-old organization that matches privately owned yachts with scientists who need time at sea.
(Other members include yacht builder Arksen, media firm BOAT International, and nonprofits Nekton Foundation and Ocean Family Foundation.) Yachts for Science will enable about $1 million worth of donated yacht time this year, McCallum says, a figure he expects to hit $15 million by 2029. "There's a personal satisfaction that we are contributing to something that is bigger than us," says Tom Peterson, who co-owns an insurance underwriting company in California and as a "mini superyacht.
" Every year for the past decade, Peterson donated about 15 to 20 days of time and fuel on the 24-meter Valkyrie to scientists, who he takes out himself as a licensed captain and former scuba dive operator. He often works with the Shark Lab at California State University Long Beach, and allows researchers to stay aboard for days at a time instead of having to constantly make the 1.5hour trip to and from shore.
To link up with scientists, Peterson works with the International SeaKeepers Society, a Florida-based nonprofit that engages the yachting community to support ocean conservation and research. "The more we understand things about the ocean in general, the better we all are in the long run," he says. When "superyacht" and "the environment" appear in the same sentence, it's usually in a different context.
In 2019, one study estimated that a single 77-yard superyacht has the same annual carbon footprint as about 200 cars. In 2021, another paper found that superyachts were the single greatest contributor to the carbon footprint of 20 of the world's most prominent billionaires, accounting for 64% of their combined emissions. "If you really want to respect the environment, you can just go surf," says Grégory Salle, a senior researcher at the French National Centre for Scientific Research and author of the book "Superyachts: Luxury, Tranquility and Ecocide.
" Salle is open to the idea that superyachts could be used to advance scientific research, but says it's contradictory for anyone to buy a superyacht and claim to be truly concerned about the environment. Get local news delivered to your inbox!.
