China's new manned submersible returned to the Port of Sanya, Hainan Province on the ship Tansuo-1 on Oct 3 after completing deep-sea testing in the South China Sea.

The manned submersible, named Shenhai Yongshi, or deep-sea warrior, dove to 4,500 meters to test its functions and performance during an expedition of more than 50 days.

CAS President Bai Chunli said in a congratulatory letter that the tests showed the new manned submersible performed well and was another achievement for China in developing deep-sea manned submersibles.

Shenhai Yongshi is another milestone following the manned submersible Jiaolong and is proof that China had progressed from integrated innovation to independent innovation in developing deep-sea equipment.

Shenhai Yongshi was a major mission under the 863 Program, or State High-Tech Development Plan, part of the 12th Five Year Plan (2011-15).

The development of the submersible took eight years, and involved breakthroughs in a series of key technologies for overall design and optimization, design and manufacturing of a thick titanium alloy manned cabin, buoyancy materials for deep submergence and a low-noise deep-sea thruster.

Based on the successful development and application of Jiaolong all core components of the new submersible were domestically made, which reduced operation and maintenance costs and will give a significant boost to China’s systematic development of deep-sea equipment.

Shenhai Yongshi, on board the ship Tansuo-1, returned to the Port of Sanya, Hainan Province on Oct 3, after completing deep-sea testing in the South China Sea during an expedition lasting over 50-days. It reached a depth of 4,500 meters to test its functions and performance, a noteworthy achievement in the development of the new submersible. (Image by Guo Cheng/Xinhua)

Source: english.cas.cn