Monnet Update - Juggling with the weather
by François Blanchet 18 Apr 2000 18:16 BST
Philippe Monnet is currently negotiating a change in weather systems in the middle of the Indian Ocean. As from this evening he should be picking up NW winds, before changing to SE winds by Thursday 20th. Last position at 13.13 GMT : 29°03’ S – 72°10’ E.
From one weather system to another...
"At the moment UUNET is going from a subtropical low to a polar type low", explained Pierre Lasnier, meteorologist with MétéoMer. Philippe is expertly negotiating this change of systems maintaining an average speed of between 7 and 9 knots. He covered 170 miles in the day, which is a good average by any account : "it could have been worse…" confided Pierre Lasnier.
Concretely, Philippe who is currently picking up winds from the SE will be in NW winds from this evening. "Then we’ll have excellent conditions again from Thursday 20th," added Pierre Lasnier.
9 days lead over the record
Today Tuesday Philippe is at the midway point between Australia and South Africa, which he should reach by the end of the month.
He has a 9 day lead over Mike Golding’s record (161 days), and hopes to further improve on that as his weather router explained : "Philippe would like to trim off another two days before reaching the Cape of Good Hope, and it’s quite on the cards…"
More Information: www.70degresud.com