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| The Alvin |
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| courtesy of oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/ |
The Alvin
The Alvin is a type of submersible. It was the first deep-sea submersible that could hold passenegers. The Alvin can dive up to 14,764 feet, and it can stay underwater for up to 10 hours under normal conditions. The Alvin dives about 150 to 200 times every year. It takes about two hours for the Alvin to reach the typical depth, and another two hours to surface. The Alvin is equipped with three portholes, film and video cameras, and two hydraulic manipulator arms. One are is used for the more delicate jobs while the other is used for the heavy lifting. The Alvin is also equipped with many features that allow tests to be done without taking samples back to a lab, and features that allow recording and communicating of data.
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| courtesy of oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/ |
Clelia
Clelia is a 23 ft long, 8 ft 3 in long, and 9 ft 7 in high submersible. Clelia can hold two passengers as well as one pilot. There are 10 view ports, allowing reseachers to have an excellent view. Clelia has sonar, still, and video cameras, as well as a hydraulic manipulator equipped with a suction sampler, a clam scoop, and other sampling devices. Clelia has the ability to balance midwater and provide an extremely stable platform for the researchers to work. A typical dive with Clelia lasts between 4 and 5 hours.
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| courtesy of oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/ |
Diving
Without special equipment, staying under water for long amounts of time is impposible, as is going to great depths. In the 1940s scuba was invented to allow people to breathe underwater. However, you could not go very deep due to the tremendous pressure. Although advances in technology have made it possible to dive deeper, divers still can't reach depths that we need to reach for research. There are two types of diving; scuba and technical. Scuba requires the least amount of equipment, but there is a limited dive time and depth, due to the limited amount of air. Technical diving is any form of diving that exceeds the time and depth restraints on recreational scuba diving. Technical divers sometimes use a mixture of gasses to breathe, instead of just compressed air.
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| courtesy of oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/ |
Atlantis
The Atlantis is a general purpose research vessel. The Altlantis supports the Alvin as well as the remotely operated vehicle, Jason. It can travel at sea for up to 60 days. The Altlantis provides more than 3,500 square feet of laboratory space, two stowrooms for large gear, and the main deck has two hangars for Alvin and the ROV. The Atlantis has a huge variety of permanent tools, as well as a computer system that connects the laboratories, staterooms, and bridge. The most distinguishable characteristic of the Atlantis is its huge crane, which is used to lift the Alvin.
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