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Spotlight on sea turtles this World Ocean Day

by: Cassandra Tanti
07/06/2021

As part of World Oceans Day, Tuesday 8th June, Monaco is once again educating sea users on how to report sightings of marine animals, particularly sea turtles, and how to help those in distress.
Organised by the Monegasque government and the Oceanographic Institute, the meeting is set to bring together around 40 sea users and aims to engage and encourage them to report any sightings of turtles and marine mammals. The data collected will make it possible to identify the species present in Monegasque waters, to better understand their behaviour, and contribute to the study and protection of ecosystems.
The first edition was organised in March 2019 during the opening of the Monegasque Centre for the Care of Marine Species (CMSEM) at the Oceanographic Museum.
Since then, more than 120 observations have been made including 119 loggerhead turtles and seven green turtles, documenting their age, state of health and travel habits.
Observe, Report, Preserve
Sea users are invited to report all types of marine animals, from cetaceans to sharks, as well as any unusual situation such as waste or pollution.
Particular attention, however, is paid to sea turtles, and participants of the Monegasque meeting are educated on the rules of observation, as well as those for the intervention and handling of these animals when necessary. They are taught how to identify if a sea turtle is in distress, how to handle it in accordance with good practices, and how to notify the specialised networks.
They are also encouraged to share their observations on the digital platform OBSenMER, which is designed to be used by both professionals and the general public for the collection, saving and sharing of information.
The easy-to-use application allows users to enter the place of observation, date and time, as well as the type of animal that has been spotted.
The Oceanographic Museum is directly notified of each observation made via the platform, and the government is also made aware so it can better understand the biodiversity of Monegasque waters.

Photo of the outdoor sea turtle rehabilitation tank at the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco by Cassandra Tanti for Monaco Life

The observations are also added to the databases of structures such as the Network of French Mediterranean Sea Turtles (RTMMF), MIRACETI and ACCOBAMS to improve and strengthen knowledge of species.
The Monegasque Centre for the Care of Marine Species (CMSEM) at the Oceanographic Museum has a laboratory dedicated to the care of injured or sick animals, the reproduction and breeding of animals, as well as a large outdoor pool for rehabilitation – which is visible to the public – before the animals are put back to sea.
The CMSEM also runs collaborative projects dedicated to the study of seahorses and large nacres.
 
 
Photo of a sea turtle in the Oceanographic Museum by Cassandra Tanti, Monaco Life 
 
 

France reveals details of its ‘Traffic light’ travel rule system

by: Cassandra Tanti
04/06/2021

The US and UK have been placed on France’s orange list, meaning only vaccinated travellers will be able to enter the country. The rest of Europe has been placed in the green zone, with only a negative test required by authorities.
The government revealed to French media RMC and BFMTV on Friday details of its ‘Traffic light’ based travel rule system, due to take effect from Wednesday 9th June.
Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, Secretary of State in charge of Tourism, confirmed that countries will be placed in three categories: green, orange and red.
All member states of the European Union as well as Australia, South Korea, Israel, Japan, Lebanon, New Zealand and Singapore have been placed in the ‘green zone’. Travellers from these countries will be able to enter France freely if they are vaccinated. For others, a negative PCR or antigen test of less than 72 hours will be requested.
People will be considered vaccinated two weeks after they receive both doses, or four weeks for those vaccinated with Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine.
The United States and the United Kingdom have been placed in the ‘orange zone’, “where the circulation of the virus still exists but is under control and where there is no variant of concern,” said Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne. Travellers from these countries must not only be vaccinated but also present a negative PCR test of less than 72 hours or an antigen test of less than 48 hours. Non-vaccinated people will not be able to set foot on French soil unless they have a compelling reason.
Finally, the countries falling into the ‘red zone’ include South Africa, Brazil and India. Travellers from these countries will not be able to come to France without a compelling reason, whether they are vaccinated or not.
 
 
 
Photo by Yousef Alfuhigi on Unsplash
 
 
 
 

The Odyssey returns just in time for warm summer nights

by: Stephanie Horsman
03/06/2021

The Metropole Hotel has announced the reopening date of its rooftop hotspot, Odyssey Lounge Bar and Restaurant, where guests can enjoy everything from a relaxing after work apero to a Mediterranean dinner under the stars.
Located next to a swimming pool, the Odyssey was forced to stay closed due to health restrictions despite the reopening of the Metropole Hotel in April. But not for much longer.
From Thursday 10th June, the Odyssey Lounge Bar and Restaurant returns, ready to host guests for cocktails and dinner.

Photo of the Karl Lagerfeld-designed rooftop by C. Larit

Situated in Monte-Carlo, the beating heart of Monaco, this peaceful locale, imagined and designed by the late, great Karl Lagerfeld, is a place to relax and enjoy the best of Monaco’s summer.
It will feature music curated by the hotel’s sound designer, Beatrice Ardisson, and from 7pm onwards, Odyssey will offer aperos and gourmet tapas including a cocktail bar menu.
When the sun goes down, the full impact of the Lagerfeld mural depicting the voyage of Ulysses will be played up using artistic and tasteful lights twinkling off the pool to create a stunning overall effect.
To top it all off, Executive Chef Christophe Cussac will be serving up Mediterranean-style fare using fresh, seasonal products, offering the best the Côte d’Azur has to offer from his newly renovated kitchens.
Photo of the Odysee Restaurant by C. Larit

“People do not see what has been done in the back of house, but it is a revolution for our teams, it is so exciting,” Chef Cussac told Monaco Life during April’s hotel reopening.
For a taste of Monaco elegance, check out the Odyssey, open for dinner from 7:30pm Thursday to Monday all summer.
 
READ ALSO:
The ‘blossoming’ Metropole Hotel
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Venturi to launch world’s first zero emissions polar explorer

by: Cassandra Tanti
02/06/2021

Venturi, the Monegasque high-performance electric vehicle constructor, is set to unveil the world’s first ever zero emissions polar exploration vehicle on World Environment Day, 5th June.
Returning from a trip to the Antarctic in 2019, Prince Albert II of Monaco remarked to Venturi’s President Gildo Pastor that the research stations there had no environmentally-friendly, non-polluting vehicles. So, the Prince Albert II Foundation asked Venturi to come up with a zero emissions solution, to carry passengers and equipment to and from the scientific research sites.
Three successive versions of the vehicle were designed. The latest, presented to the Prince at Venturi’s workshops on 1st June, will be operational from 7th December 2021 at the Belgian Princess Elisabeth research station.

Photo of Venturi’s explorer vehicle with Spitsbergen – Svalbard and Jan Mayer Icebergs peaking from a frozen sea with mountains in the background, supplied by Venturi

Antarctica’s bodywork and styling were created by Sacha Lakic, the designer with whom Venturi has worked closely for many years. His vision cleverly navigates the technical constraints imposed by the research and development department, most of which are to do with the vehicle’s thermal insulation, the size of the battery, and the chassis’ tubular structure.
Sacha Lakic also succeeded in the challenge of devising a design that is versatile, yet ensures the right level of comfort for the vehicle’s occupants. With its fold-down bench seats, Antarctica is able to carry up to six people, along with equipment and a second battery to extend the initial range of 50 kilometres.
Antarctica is the encapsulation of Venturi’s technological expertise. The Research and Development teams – already working on the Voxan and Venturi world speed records programme – have created a completely unique vehicle, equipped with cutting-edge technological solutions that are both bold and clever.
On Tuesday 1st June, during his visit to see the next generation Antarctica for the first time, Venturi presented the Prince with a gift of the original prototype that he drove in Canada in March 2019. Prince Albert II took the controls of the vehicle to navigate part of the 42-kilometre mountainside route between Dease Lake and Telegraph Creek, on the lands of the Tahltan people.
Prince Albert with the team in Canada 2019, photo provided by Venturi

“It remains a source of great pride for the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation to work alongside intrepid and visionary entrepreneurs like Gildo Pastor, making sustainable innovation not just the core of their R&D, but using it to further the cause of science and preserving our planet,” said Olivier Wenden, Vice-President and Chief Executive of the Prince Albert II Foundation.
“This new Antarctica vehicle is itself a magnificent example of the feats we are capable of, and I am sure it will be a real asset for the scientists at Princess Elisabeth Antarctic research station. The polar regions, particularly fragile and vulnerable, must be the focus of all our attentions. They are on the front line of the devastating effects of climate change. To improve our knowledge without disturbing ecosystems, using a zero-emissions vehicle capable of withstanding extreme conditions, is a major step forward.”
Photo of Gildo Pastor by Venturi

Since 2000, the Venturi Group has specialised in the design and manufacture of high-performance electric vehicles. Whether through world records, expeditions on hostile terrain, the creation of the first electric sports car, the development of innovative vehicles or its involvement in the Formula E World Championship, the Venturi Group embodies and demonstrates all the capabilities of the electric vehicle on two or four wheels.
“With the Venturi Antarctica, scientists are getting an efficient, easy-to-handle vehicle with very good performance,” said Gildo Pastor, President of Venturi. “They will be able to carry out their research in optimum conditions, without polluting sites where the quality of analyses needs to be accurate down to the last molecule. We are proud to have developed a technological solution that fulfils the remit given to us by the Prince Albert II Foundation.”
 
READ ALSO:

Gildo Pastor’s motorcycle team makes history books

Venturi reveals world’s first high speed e-motorcycle

Electric car brand Venturi celebrates 20th year

 
 
 
Monaco Life with Venturi press release
 
 
 

Rosberg’s team claims 2nd straight Extreme E win

by: Cassandra Tanti
01/06/2021

Nico’s Rosberg X Racing has scored its consecutive Extreme E championship victory in Senegal, despite a first-corner collision with Lewis Hamilton’s X44 team.
The pioneering electric SUV, off-road racing series delivered even more spectacular moments and overtakes on the weekend than the dramatic curtain-raising Desert X Prix in the Saudi deserts of AlUla eight weeks ago.
Running alongside the stunning backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean in Dakar, Senegal, the Extreme E showdown featured the notoriously bumpy and flowing ‘Moguls’ section, a single file wooded area and a spectacular start/finish straight running along the beach, a course that has been heralded by the drivers as more technical and closer to their initial vision of Extreme E.

Molly Taylor (AUS)/Johan Kristoffersson (SWE), Rosberg X Racing, Cristina Gutierrez (ESP)/Sebastien Loeb (FRA), X44, Jamie Chadwick (GBR)/Stephane Sarrazin (FRA), Veloce Racing, and Cristina Gutierrez (ESP)/Sebastien Loeb (FRA), X44.

Rosberg X Racing (RXR) teammates Molly Taylor and Johan Kristoffersson overcame intense pressure from their rivals to be crowned winners of the first-ever Ocean X prix, after both Jenson Button’s JBXE outfit and Lewis Hamilton’s X44 squad retired in the early stages of the two-lap, 12.6km race.
Hamilton’s car sustained damage to its right-front wheel after contact between Cristina Gutierrez in the X44 and leader Molly Taylor for Rosberg X Racing. That was almost immediately followed by Button’s SUV sustaining terminal damage on the long, bumpy shoreside run at the start of the lap.
After the race was red-flagged so that the two cars could be cleared, a standing restart saw Rosberg’s Johan Kristoffersson and Veloce’s Jamie Chadwick battle for the lead, but the former pulled away and completed the second lap to win by 14 seconds.
Button’s team came in third, and Hamilton’s fourth.
Nico Rosberg, founder and CEO, Rosberg X Racing with Molly Taylor (AUS), Johan Kristoffersson (SWE), and team members.

“I’m so happy for us as a team to have won in Extreme E for the second time. Two out of two, wow,” said Nico Rosberg, founder and CEO of RXR, after the win. “You know, it’s not to be underestimated the challenge that was out there this weekend. It’s so difficult because no one really understands the cars properly, as you don’t get a chance to test them. So, you have to guess and figure things out – as a team, we’re really trying to bring a Formula 1 approach to Extreme E here which is really helping us as a team to perform.
“It’s so cool as well that in AlUla, it was Johan that very much did it at the start and Molly followed on, but today it’s Molly that made the magic in the final and then Johan brought it home,” the former Formula 1 champion added.
Christine ‘GZ’ Giampaoli Zonca (ESP), Oliver Bennett (GBR), Hispano Suiza Xite Energy Team.

Nine teams and 18 drivers competed, but in a slight change to the Saudi Arabia race format, the final was a four-car battle, with two teams from each of the two semi-finals progressing to the concluding race.
Segi TV Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kyle LeDuc took the new Super Sector title, earning an extra five points for his team setting the fastest time of 1 minute 50.891 seconds – 1.289 seconds ahead of X44’s Sebastien Loeb.
“The race format here has been a big step forward from AlUla in terms of development for race excitement – but it’s still early stages and there’s still a way to go,” Rosberg said. “I love this whole championship and being in the role of team principal – I’m still as competitive as hell even though I’m not actually driving. Anyway, we have the two best drivers in the car who are doing a much better job than I could – and I couldn’t be happier.”
Rosberg’s team is sitting at the top of the championship ahead of the third event of the climate-aware series, the Arctic X Prix, in Greenland on 28th to 29th August.
 
READ ALSO:

Rosberg X Racing makes history as first Extreme E winner 

 
 
Photos: Extreme E media centre
 
 

Nice airport first in EU to use wind-shear detecting radar

by: Stephanie Horsman
01/06/2021

Landings at Nice Côte d’Azur airport are set to become a lot softer thanks to the acquisition of a super-powerful lidar to detect sudden episodes of windshear, a first for any European airport.
Nice airport’s proximity to the sea, mountains and plains of the Var make it a prime locale for sudden variations in wind direction, also known as wind shear. This phenomenon can make difficulties for pilots, especially during landing phases.
Now, the airport is benefitting from one of the world’s most powerful Doppler lidars in Europe. Acquired by Météo France and built by Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, this new equipment compliments the observation systems currently in place and will make for safer journeys all around.
“We warmly thank Météo France for having acquired and implemented this lidar, which strengthens the safety of aircraft and their crews, and passenger comfort in the service of the performance of our Nice platform,” said Franck Goldnadel, Chairman of the Management Board of the Airports of the Côte d’Azur.
Lidar, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure variable distances to the Earth. A lidar is effective even in dry weather, whereas a x-band radar, the equipment used prior to the arrival of the lidar, is effective only in wet conditions as it uses raindrops and clouds to sense the patterns.
The lidar works using aerosols suspended in the atmosphere’s lower layers to measure wind by Doppler effect to follow movements. This allows forecasters to predict wind shear and its close cousin, turbulence, up to 10 minutes in advance. This allows pilots to anticipate the coming conditions and adjust during crucial take-off and landing phases.
Several airports are using the Mitsubishi lidar, notably in Southeast Asia and Japan, and Nice is the first in Europe to have access to it.
 
 
 
Photo source: Pixabay