Joyon will slow today

Meteorological challenges facing Frenchman today

Position at 05:58: 43deg 50.84'S 47deg 29.72'W
Distance from start: 20672.87 nmiles
Speed and course: 14.68 knots /041°

Francis Joyon aboard the trimaran IDEC has just racked up another 400 mile day. However his impressive speeds are likely to take a dive today as the Frenchman must tackle an area of high pressure that is currently lying directly across his path.

Beyond this the weather situation is looking complex. The high pressure system he will encounter today looks set to be absorbed by the main South Atlantic high to the east by tomorrow morning. Joyon will then have to contend with a shallow low pressure system currently forming off Rio de Janiero, which looks set to block his path. The good news is that there is wind in this system and if Joyon plays his cards right he should find favourable winds up its west side as the system slowly tracks south.