Wednesday, June 10, 2020

China’s Haidou-1 sets deep dive record

Unmanned submersible collected samples and took high-def images at a depth of 10,907 metres in the Mariana Trench

By DAVE MAKICHUK JUNE 10, 2020
One of the residents of the Mariana Trench, the Deep Sea Anglerfish. Credit: Handout.

“Haidou-1” has set a new Chinese record for the world’s deepest dive, reaching a depth of 10,907 metres under the Pacific Ocean surface of the Mariana Trench, the deepest area in the world.

The unmanned submersible also collected samples from the deep sea and took high-definition images of the geological environment, India TV News reported.

Members of the expedition team from the Shenyang Institute of Automation with the Chinese Academy of Sciences said that the vehicle exceeded 10,000 meters four times at the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench during the trip, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The team left for the expedition on April 23 and returned to the northeast China province of Liaoning on Monday.

During the deep-sea diving operation, researchers tested high-precision depth detection, machine hand operation, acoustic detection and positioning, and high-definition video transmission.

The submersible collected samples from the deep sea and captured high-definition images of the geological environment, the report said.

China in recent years has stepped up efforts to develop deep sea technology to explore mining of rich natural resources from the sea bed.

During a four-hour exploration of the Mariana Trench in April of 2019, retired naval officer Victor Vescovo piloted his submarine to 10,927 meters (35,849 feet) below the sea’s surface, making it the deepest dive on record.

While Vescovo potentially discovered four new species, he also found a plastic bag and candy wrappers.

About 8 million tons of plastic are thrown into the ocean every year, mostly washed into the sea by rivers. There will be more plastic than fish in the sea by 2050 if current trends continue, according to the United Nations.

China’s unnamed submersible Haidou-1 reportedly dived to a depth of 10,907 meters at the world’s deepest ocean point. Credit: Handout.

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