Frederik at Galathea 3 homecoming

Today Crown Prince Frederik has been to Langelinje (part of the Copenhagen harbour) to take part in the homecoming celebration for the return of the Galathea 3 expedition on the specially re-fitted Danish navy surveillance vessel the Vædderen. It has been 258 days since the Vædderen set sail from Copenhagen. Frederik joined the ship as it entered the harbour and the Sixtus Battery gave a salute as it sailed into Langelinje with the Crown Prince on board.



Galathea 3 photo gallery

B.T. photo gallery

B.T. video clip (02:54)

Added: The Copenhagen Post 'Around the world in 287 days'

We should also mention that before Lillepigen was born Frederik had also attended several functions in anticipation of the return of the Galathea 3 research expedition voyage in the Vædderen to mark its homecoming. The events were organised by the Danish Expeditionary Foundation at Nyhavn in Copenhagen and recognised the sponsors. There was a time when sponsorship by newspaper Jyllands Posten made all the difference for the expedition to proceed. The foundation has been the organiser and fundraiser for Galathea 3. There have been a number of events to mark the return of the Vædderen and highlight the work of the expedition. Frederik attended a lunch on 12 April 2007 and another on April 17.

There was an interesting note for April 17: as it made its way home, the Vædderen passed the point in the Atlantic where the Titanic sank, at 41 degrees 46 minutes north by 50 degrees 14 minutes west. Also check out the Jyllands Posten/Galathea 3 photo series from the whole voyage including the 'best of' gallery just posted.

An interesting Swedish link which gives a good overview of the vision behind the Galathea project: SASNET - Swedish South Asian Studies Network

And a little background about Galathea 3: it is the largest Danish scientific expedition since the Galathea 2 expedition more than 50 years ago. The aim is to strengthen Danish scientific research through the research projects conducted during the expedition, and also to inspire recruitment of scientists from among upcoming generations.

Galathea 3 has focused on education and communicating about the 71 research projects conducted on board the Vaedderen. The ship has circumnavigated the world over seven months at sea with 35 research scientists, a dozen journalists, photographers and TV crew, plus a couple of students and their teacher onboard. A crew of 50 have kept the ship sailing and functioning for the more or less 100 people onboard.

The research projects have included the areas of climate and the environment, biology, geology, history and culture.