DRAGON OUT OF SEA: Manned submersible Jiaolong surfaces after a successful diving test in the South China Sea in July 2010 By (XINHUA)

The first China-designed and developed manned submersible Jiaolong has successfully completed its work in manned tests, diving to 3,000 meters under the waves, the Ministry of Science and Technology and the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) said at a press conference on August 26. With a deepest dive to 3,759 meters, Jiaolong surpassed the average ocean depth, 3,682 meters. It also established a record by operating underwater for 9 hours and 3 minutes.

A project study is under way for the building of a national deep-sea base in the coastal area of Qingdao in Shandong Province to provide ground services for manned submersibles.

Jiaolong is designed to dive as deep as 7,000 meters below sea level, and can operate in 99.8 percent of the world's sea areas. It will take 5 hours to reach 7,000 meters below sea level from the ocean surface, and can work for as long as 12 hours underwater.

In the future, Jiaolong will take on various complex missions, such as carrying scientists and engineers into deep sea to carry out scientific investigation and exploration of oceanic ridges, basins and submarine hydrothermal vents. It will also conduct submarine prospecting and high-precision topographic surveys, detect and capture suspicious objects, lay fixed underwater equipment, detect submarine cables and pipelines, as well as undertake general deep-sea inquiries and salvage operations.

"A manned submersible provides a powerful tool for scientists to carry out all kinds of research unavailable in laboratories by taking them directly to deep seas," said Peng Xiaotong, a research fellow with the National Marine Geological Laboratory at Shanghai-based Tongji University. He has been taken twice to the Northeast Pacific Ocean ridge for scientific investigations by U.S. submersible Alvin.

An innovation

China began to work on an ambitious ocean exploration program in 2002. In order to promote the development of China's deep-sea delivery technology, in 2002, the Ministry of Science and Technology launched the Jiaolong Project as part of the State Hi-Tech Development Program (863 Program). This project was designed to provide important hi-tech equipment for China's seabed ocean resources surveys and scientific research, as well as develop generic technology for deep-sea exploration and sea floor operations.

After six years of joint efforts involving in scientists from about 100 research institutes and enterprises all over the country, China eventually overcame a series of technical difficulties in the deep-sea technology field. These included the development of manned submersible bodies, completion of water support systems and transformation of testing vessels, as well as selection and training of oceanauts. Taken together these provided the technical know-how for carrying out undersea tests.

Since August 2009, Jiaolong has successively been tested at 1,000 meters and 3,000 meters below sea level. In the South China Sea test from May 31 to July 18, 2010, Jiaolong completed 17 dives. Seven surpassed 2,000 meters and four reached as deep as 3,000 meters. The deepest reached 3,759 meters.