U.S. Revives Cold War Submarine Spy Program to Counter China
Beijing and its neighbors. China is also building a fleet of underwater and surface sea drones to scour for enemy submarines, the two people said.The Chinese push extends far into the Pacific. The state-run China Academy of Sciences said in 2018 it was operating two underwater sensors: one in Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, the deepest known point on earth; the other near Yap, an island in the Federated States of Micronesia. Though China says these sensors are used for scientific purposes, they could detect submarine movements near the U.S. naval base on Guam, a Pacific island territory
Op/Ed: We Cannot Let the OceanGate Tragedy Put a Pause on Ocean Exploration
this vehicle class in the SOLAS convention itselfAt the same time, we must ensure any international regulations acknowledge the stellar track record of both manned and unmanned ocean exploration. Record-setting explorer Victor Vescovo, for example, has completed 15 successful submersible dives to Challenger Deep in the DNV-certified submersible Limiting Factor, in addition to reaching all four of the ocean's 10,000+ meter deepest points. In the case of unmanned exploration, during my tenure with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA), I initiated the 2020 national strategy
They Say We Know More About the Moon Than About the Deep Sea. They’re Wrong
of visitorsAnother related and incorrect comparison is that more people have set foot on the Moon than have visited the deepest place on Earth.This statement is difficult to substantiate. “The deepest place on Earth” could refer to the Mariana Trench, or just the deepest part of it (the Challenger Deep, named for the British survey ship HMS Challenger).The bathyscaphe Trieste was the first crewed vessel to reach Challenger Deep, in 1960. US NavyNevertheless, at least 27 and as many as 40 or more people have visited the Challenger Deep as of early 2023. On the other hand, only 12 people have
In Memoriam: E. John Michel, MRCM (DV) USN (Ret), Chief-of-the-Boat, Bathyscaph Trieste
our deepest dive in 1960. His upbeat personality, sense of humor and unmatched story telling abilities were great morale boosters for the whole team.His skills as a problem solver reached new heights when a serious failure with our pressure hull threatened to end the program before our dive into Challenger Deep. John worked out a brilliant field fix and executed it. While it was not ‘good as new’ it was quite safe for resuming our dive program. After the fix Jacques Piccard and I made two more dives, one to 24,000 and the other to 35,912 feet. With the latter being
Lander Lab #5: Lithium Polymer Batteries
industry is undergoing dramatic change with new battery developments that follow the personal computer and cell phone industries. The Tesla Powerwall, which uses a stack of LiPos, allows homes to get off the grid when the grid goes down. WHOI’s DSV ALVIN, James Cameron’s DSV DEEP SEA CHALLENGER, and Triton Submarine’s TRITON 36,000/2 (DSV Limiting Factor) submersibles are powered by pressure compensated LiPo battery modules. In 2019 and 2020, Japan launched two new diesel-electric submarines, Taigei, or “Great Whale,” and Toryu, or “Fighting Dragon,” equipped
Divers Find Challenger Space Shuttle Wreckage Off Florida Coast
Divers from a documentary crew looking for the wreckage of a World War Two aircraft off the coast of Florida found a 20-foot section of the space shuttle Challenger, which exploded and broke apart shortly after its launch in 1986, NASA said on Thursday.The divers contacted NASA after spotting a large, clearly modern object mostly covered in sand at the bottom of the ocean and bearing the shuttle's distinctive tiles, the space agency said in a written statement."This discovery gives us an opportunity to pause once again, to uplift the legacies of the seven pioneers we lost, and to reflect on
James Fisher Wraps IRM Project for NEO Energy
and high performance to preserve safety and stability around the GPIII’s turret mooring system during ongoing production activities.Following the fast-tracked development of project specific procedures by the project delivery team, JF Subtech chartered the offshore construction vessel Olympic Challenger and mobilized a team of 35 offshore personnel to safely execute the scope of work.The scope of work included the removal of an existing thruster by lowering it through the GPIII hull, followed by subsea transfer and recovery to the deck of the diving support vessel (DSV), with the reverse process
JF Subtech Wraps Subsea IRM work on Ithaca Energy's North Sea Platform
of cofferdams to facilitate internal valve maintenance, carried out the rectification on riser guides, and completed essential inspection work on over 160 areas of the FPF-1 hulls and sub-structure."Despite having to contend with short workable weather windows, the team on board the Olympic Challenger, a DP2 construction vessel equipped with a JF Subtech Air Dive Spread and Cougar Light Work Class ROV system, were able to execute 80 air dives and 126 hours of ROV operations," JF Subtech said.
Winners of Captain Don Walsh Award for Ocean Exploration Announced
development, application, and propagation of marine technology toward the advancement of ocean exploration. Walsh and co-pilot Jacques Piccard were aboard the bathyscaph Trieste when it made its daunting record descent on January 23,1960 into the deepest point of the world’s oceans – the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench.In 2015 Vescovo proposed a goal of finding and diving into the five deepest spots in the world’s ocean with dives taking place in the Atlantic, Southern, Indian, Pacific and Arctic oceans. This feat required not only a unique diving submersible but also fielding
February 2024
