The view from the jetty towards the stern commands respect. The ship is almost 7 metres wide and 26 metres long. Over 60 tonnes of aluminium are straining against the thick mooring lines. The 36-metre-high mast would make even an IMOCA look dainty by comparison. Boris Herrmann’s Malizia team has been sailing with the ‘Climate Action Now’ logo emblazoned on its sail right from the start. Now, however, the racing team is taking a truly decisive step towards marine conservation. To promote this, On the first day of Kiel Week, the team welcomed Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Schleswig-Holstein’s Minister-President Daniel Günther on board.
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Anyone who has met Boris Herrmann in person knows that marine and environmental protection are very important to him. The Hamburg native said: “This research vessel is a logical next step in our team’s mission. It enables us to expand our sphere of influence, explore new regions, collaborate with scientists and convey the urgent message about the state of the oceans and climate change.”
“Malizia Explorer”: Not just a research vessel
For the sake of the environment and science, it may well be worth taking things a little slower in future. The impressive vessel was handed over in Lorient, Brittany, in the spring of 2025, turning a dream into reality. The new vessel, a Garcia 85, was launched in 2005 as the ‘Beniguet’ and later sailed the world on luxury charter voyages as the ‘Fani’. Behind the project are Pierre Casiraghi, co-founder of Team Malizia, and his uncle, Prince Albert II of Monaco. For years, they have been not only championing the sport of sailing but also passionately committed to the protection of the oceans. Their commitment gives the project a boost and additional appeal beyond the worlds of sailing and science.
Despite its impressive size, the Garcia 85 surprises with its pleasant sailing characteristics. In the port of departure, Almería, the 19-tonne lifting keel is still raised. No sooner has skipper Jonathan given the command to cast off the mooring lines than crew member Calum starts up the generator: the system needs power, as the keel is lowered hydraulically shortly after leaving the harbour. With a deep rumble, the massive 19-tonne counterweight drops into place. Moments later, one of the powerful headsail furlers is already humming, and the enormous J1 unfurls at the touch of a button. With the fresh north-easterly breeze, the 26-metre-long vessel accelerates to a comfortable nine to ten knots. The mainsail remains on the boom for the time being; this isn’t about breaking records, but about maintaining a brisk, comfortable average speed. The autopilot benefits from the stable twin-rudder system with its massive, solid aluminium rudder shafts; it holds its course, gently rocking through the long waves of the western Mediterranean.
The main halyard is routed below deck via an electrically operated drum, a technical measure designed primarily to make handling the 80-metre halyard easier. Before each manoeuvre, one of the generators must be started and the magnetic clutch engaged to ensure that sufficient power is available. After that, everything is controlled at the touch of a button.
Almost the same name, very different boats
As we head out into the Atlantic, the wind picks up, the waves grow higher, and the ship reaches speeds of over twelve knots under J1 and J2. Despite her size, the ‘Malizia Explorer’ reacts to the wind and waves just like any other sailing boat. On broad reaches, she begins to yaw, and the crew off watch must secure themselves properly so as not to roll out of their berths. But there’s always a spot to be found in one of the 14 berths across five cabins.
Almost the same name, very different boats. As the big sister of the (almost) racer, the Explorer sets standards of a completely different kind: 60 tonnes of ice-strength aluminium over a length of 85.3 feet, a 19-tonne lifting keel instead of foils, plus a 36-metre-high carbon-fibre mast. Built for independence, robustness and long, fast research voyages to remote regions.
Anyone used to yachts of a normal size will have to adjust their thinking. On board the ‘Malizia Explorer’, everything is a size larger, heavier, taller and more powerful. Her imposing 36-metre carbon-fibre mast was salvaged from the ‘TAG Heuer’, a 45-metre schooner designed for Titouan Lamazou in 1992 to break records in the Jules Verne Trophy, but which was unable to sail far due to structural defects.
The kind of hustle and bustle you’d find on an IMOCA is rarely seen on board, as manoeuvres take longer here than on conventional yachts. What sets an Explorer yacht apart is its ability to be completely self-sufficient – both in the tropics and in the ice. Generously sized fresh water and fuel tanks, a high-performance seawater desalination system and two power generators ensure a steady supply to scientific instruments, computers and the on-board hydraulic systems. Air conditioning and heating ensure a stable temperature throughout the vessel. Up to 14 people need to be catered for on board – to this end, there are several freezers, fridges, a hob, a microwave, a dishwasher and, of course, a coffee machine. There is no luxury, but there is the necessary comfort to provide the crew and researchers with a functional working environment.
Making the invisible visible
The first voyages took us along the Moroccan coast, with a brief stopover in Lanzarote, then further south, along the West African coast, through Western Sahara and Mauritania. The nights glisten bright and silvery in the light of the full moon. Flying fish suddenly shoot out of the water like arrows. The sea looks like a stage from another world. Only the occasional navigation lights from merchant ships or fishing vessels appear on the horizon. Time and again, dolphins – of all sizes, colours and moods – accompany the ‘Malizia’ day after day, as if they were part of the ocean’s official welcoming committee.
Just how much life there is in the sea will become clear later, when researchers from Senegal come on board in Dakar and take and catalogue regular plankton samples from the waters off the coast using a sort of marine butterfly net. The moment the plankton – barely visible to the naked eye – is pumped through the fine tubes of an unassuming measuring instrument, past an optical system that makes even the faintest flicker in the water visible, a silent spectacle begins to unfold on the monitor. Tiny organisms, until just a moment ago part of an invisible world, now come into view: single-celled organisms, plant-like creatures, and things in between. Some are vaguely reminiscent of prawns, only the size of a comma. And all of this comes from a single three-minute sample. A fleeting sip of the ocean, in which an entire encyclopaedia of life is already teeming.
A young, capable crew – and, above all, a friendly lot
The crew of the ‘Malizia Explorer’ consists of two to three permanent professional crew members, including skipper Jonathan. Jonathan has spent his life on the world’s oceans: his French parents took him on long voyages even as a child. By his early to mid-thirties, he had already seen half the world; he knows more ports than street names, speaks fluent English as well as his mother tongue, and is an outstanding sailor.
The rest of the crew are equally impressive: with an average age of around 28, many thousands of nautical miles under their belts, multilingual, calm, approachable and highly skilled – almost all of them hold diving instructor qualifications and have a solid nautical background. It’s almost become Boris’s trademark to consistently surround himself with exceptionally friendly and capable people.
A passion for research
International research teams are regular guests on board, where they find pleasant living and working conditions. The crew of the ‘Malizia Explorer’ ensures good, varied meals. The cabins – each accommodating three to four people – are equipped with their own toilets and showers. The spacious saloon amidships offers plenty of room to open up laptops, work together, hold discussions or review research findings and images on the monitor. Some of the researchers who have sailed with us so far had no previous experience at sea before the expedition. The swell and the unfamiliar motion of the boat were particularly noticeable on the first few voyages. For some, seasickness was a daily occurrence. However, a routine soon set in, and the atmosphere on board remained focused and positive. The joy of research outweighs the physical discomfort.
The dinghy can be used to explore stretches of coastline, go diving or take samples. The Explorer version is more than just a sailing yacht; it is a mobile research station. It is equipped with its own instruments, such as the OceanPack, which operates continuously in the bow. Tried and tested in the Vendée Globe, the system operates a seawater pump round the clock, analysing physical and chemical parameters and automatically transmitting the results to the participating research institutes as soon as the yacht leaves port. With additional on-board measurement systems such as the Planktoscope or the CTD rosette, and ample space for scientists, the ‘Explorer’ offers ideal conditions for research at sea. Whether it’s Argo floats (drifting measurement buoys) or water samples, knowledge is generated on board through data collection.
The data collected is fed into international, open-access databases such as SOCAT, thereby contributing directly to our global understanding of the oceans and climate. The spacious stern garage serves as an ideal workspace from which to lower probes into the water or retrieve equipment. A compressor for filling diving cylinders is also on board, as are sufficient PC storage, computing power and the necessary infrastructure to transform a sailing ship into a genuine floating research laboratory.
Technical specifications of the “Malizia Explorer”
- Shipyard/Year of construction: Garcia/2005
- Design: Berret Racoupeau
- Total length: 26.33 m
- Fuselage length: 25.99 m
- Width: 7.00 m
- Draught/alternatively: 2.5/4.2 m
- Mast height above water level: 36.00 m
- Weight: 69.0 t
- Engine: Volvo, 318 PS
