Future Needs in Deep Submergence Science

National Academy Of Sciences, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

Deep submergence technology has a long history with many individuals and groups at numerous US institutions playing key roles in its development since the 1950's. The construction of Alvin for US Navy, strategic interests, in the early 1960s, and its eventual integration into US oceanographic facilities in the mid 1970s, ushered in an era where scientists could routinely propose to do basic research and conduct experiments in situ on the seafloor. In the early 1990's, remotely operated vehicle (ROV) technology and capabilities were introduced. ROVs used in the academic community include ROV Jason and the Argo II and DSL-120 sonar mapping systems, creating a national deep submergence capability with access to depths as great as 6000m. Since the mid-1990s there have been several committees, workshops, reports and technical publications focusing on the communities perspective on the evolving deep submergence technology in ROVs, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), and the continuing needs for human-occupied vehicles (HOVs) for basic research in the deep ocean and seafloor. NSF's Ocean Sciences Division (OCE) is interested in assisting the ocean sciences community as much as possible in the quest for the right mix of deep submergence vehicles. To accomplish this, OCE has requested an Ocean Studies Board study to: 1). assess the continued role of human occupied vehicles in deep submergence science, within the context of current and projected capabilities of remotely operated and autonomous vehicles, telepresence, seafloor observatories, and other non-human occupied technologies; 2). make recommendations regarding the mix of new facilities needed to continue to carry out world-class deep submergence science; and 3). discuss innovative design concepts and technological advances that should be incorporated into any new submersibles to support current and future research needs.