Polar bears, walruses, and blue whales.
These three animals have a few things in common. For example, they all live in the Arctic. Sadly, another similarity is that these creatures are in danger. Luckily, humans are working to protect them. The Arctic Sense mission set sail to help with this goal.
The Arctic Sense began this summer. Andreas Heide is its leader. Heide has spent months at sea. Last week, Heide and his crew docked in England. Back on land, Heide spoke about his journey.
“Our goal was to sail up to the Arctic,” Heide shared. The crew wanted to meet the animals there. That way, “we can better understand them and better take care of them.”
These animals face major issues. One is climate change. Our world is warming. This is causing the Arctic ice to melt. Many animals need that ice to survive. Heide and his team want to bring awareness to this issue and more. “If more people know, more people will care,” he said. That’s why the Arctic Sense adventure exists.
“It’s been amazing,” Heide said of the trip. The crew got to see plenty of animals. Heide even got to swim with some creatures! “I got to spend about an hour in the water with two fin whales and 10 dolphins,” Heide shared.
Fin whales are the second-largest mammal in the world. They can also swim quickly. Heide used an underwater scooter to keep up! Divers use that device to swim faster. They hold on and speed off!
“Additionally, we came across 10 blue whales,” Heide went on. Blue whales are the largest animal ever. The blue whale was hunted close to . But now, its population is on the rise. “It shows that there is hope,” Heide said.
The team will set sail again October 1. The trip will eventually come to an end in Norway. That’s where it started.
Updated September 28, 2021, 5:01 P.M. (ET)
By Alexa Tirapelli
