 Sawyer led the refitting of Greenpeace's newly acquired boat "Rainbow Warrior" and joined its crew in 1980 to sail on protest voyages.In 1985, the "Rainbow Warrior" sailed to the Pacific Ocean on the dual mission to relocate residents of Rongelap Atoll in the Marshall Islands ("Operation Exodus"), and to stop French nuclear testing on Moruroa Atoll in French Polynesia.In the 1950s, the United States tested hydrogen bombs near Rongelap.