China’s first full-depth deep-sea manned submersible, Fendouzhe, successfully descended into the Mariana Trench, the deepest point of the Earth, reaching a depth of 10,909 meters and setting a new record for Chinese manned deep-diving on November 10. Three Fendouzhe divers immediately used the groundbreaking underwater acoustic communication system to talk to audiences around the world.

The Fendouzhe is a major deep-sea scientific and technological vessel that has been specially supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China since 2016. The Institute of Acoustics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IACAS) is responsible for its acoustic technology and equipment.

The underwater acoustic communication system is the only link between Fendouzhe and its mother ship Tansuo-1 (Exploration), and is able to transmit text, voice, and images in real time from the 10,000-meter seabed to the mother ship.

With the help of the integrated navigation system and sonar equipment, the divers in Fendouzhe successfully retrieved three underwater samples from the 10,000 meter seabed on November 16 in just half an hour. An image of the sample was transmitted back to the mother ship through the underwater acoustic communication modem.

Source: Global Times