The S.A. Agulhas II has departed from the East Pier of Cape Town harbour on 6 December 2018. The ship then docked at customs, where passports of all passengers onboard were stamped. The ship officially left Cape Town 7 December 2018 en route Antarctica.
Track the S.A. Agulhas II here.

Programme Director, Nishendra Devanunthan, coming down the gangway after some final checks onboard.

Two postgrad students of the Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering Departmenet at Stellenbosch University (James Matthee & Christof van Zijl) that will be testing the ship’s shaft line during this voyage.

Chef Chad Africa is ready for his 10th Antarctic expedition.

Team members ready for their 14 month Antarctic Expedition.

Family and friends waiting on the quayside to wave goodbye. Some will retun in 3 months time, others will only return in 2020.

The 58th SANAE Overwintering Team.

SANAE58 Team Logo.

Team member of the 5th SANAE Team (1964), Guy Trevor Robertson, attended the ship’s departure. With him in the photo is Ria Olivier (ALSA), who will make sure Guy’s images, of his time in the Antarctic, gets archived.

The S.A. Agulhas II departing from East Pier, Cape Town Harbour.
The voyage schedule is as follows:
SANAE | 06/12/2018 | 19/12/2018 | Annual relief voyage Cape Town to Antarctica (Penguin Bukta) | ||
20/12/2018 | 31/12/2018 | Offloading, fuel pumping | |||
01/01/2019 | 14/02/2019 | Weddell Sea Expedition | |||
15/02/2019 | 23/02/2019 | Back-loading, fuel pumping | |||
24/02/2019 | 11/03/2019 | Return to Cape Town (via SS Island if required) |
Onboard the vessel is the 58th SANAE Overwintering team that will stay in and maintain South Africa’s Antarctic research station (SANAE IV), while gathering weather and space weather data for a period of 14 months.Salomé Odendaal (Team Medical Doctor)Travis Duck (SANSA Radar Engineer)Bongisipho Kuali (DEA Mechanical Engineer)Ewald Ferreira (Communications Engineer)Jacques Robbertze (DEA Diesel Mechanic)Sanele Mkhize (DEA Diesel Mechanic)Marvin Rankuda (Senior Meteorological Technician)Mpati Boleme (SANSA VLF Engineer)Jufter Munyai (DEA Electrical Engineer)
The Weddell Sea Expedition will also form part of this voyage – click here for more information.
Anche Louw, Antarctic Legacy of South Africa, 13 December 2018