The Mariana Trench is one of the least explored places on our planet. Although the deepest ocean trench still hides a lot of secrets, man managed to find out a few interesting facts about its structure and parameters.

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Some of the data about the Mariana Trench is known to a fairly wide circle.

1. Thus, the pressure in the Mariana Trench is 1100 times greater than at sea level. For this reason, immersing a living creature without special equipment in a chute is an effective way to commit suicide.

2. The maximum depth of the Mariana Trench is 10,994 meters ± 40 meters (according to data from 2011). For comparison, the highest peak on Earth, Everest, reaches a height of 8,848 meters, and therefore, if it were in the Mariana Trench, it would be completely covered with water.

3. The deep-sea trench got its name from Mariana Islands, located approximately 200 km to the west.

Research missions that dared to descend into the deep-sea trench discovered its more amazing facts.

4. The water in the Mariana Trench is relatively warm, ranging from 1 to 4 degrees Celsius. The reason for such a high temperature of deep-sea water is hydrothermal springs, the water around which heats up to 450 degrees Celsius.

5. Huge poisonous xenophyophores live in the gutter. Single-celled organisms reach 10 centimeters (!) in diameter.

6. The Mariana Trench is home to shellfish. Invertebrates are found in the vicinity of serpentine hydrothermal vents, which emit hydrogen and methane necessary for the life of mollusks.

7. The Champagne hydrothermal vent in the basin produces liquid carbon dioxide.

8. The bottom of the depression is covered with viscous mucus, which is crushed shells and plankton remains, turned into sticky mud by incredible water pressure.

9. At a depth of about 414 meters in the Mariana Trench there is active volcano Daikoku. The volcanic eruptions formed a lake of liquid sulfur, the temperature of which reaches 187 degrees Celsius.

10. In 2011, 4 stone “bridges” were discovered in the Mariana Trench, each 69 kilometers long. Scientists suggest that they were formed at the junction of the Pacific and Philippine tectonic plates.

11. Famous director James Cameron became one of three daredevils who made the descent into Mariana Trench. The creator of Avatar began his journey in 2012.

12. Mariana Trench is a US National Monument and the largest marine sanctuary in the world.

13. The Mariana Trench is by no means a strictly vertical depression in seabed. The shape of the Mariana Trench resembles a crescent, about 2,550 kilometers long and an average width of 69 kilometers.

Close to east coast There is an underwater canyon in the Philippine Islands. It's so deep that you could fit Mount Everest in it and still have about three kilometers to spare. There is impenetrable darkness and incredible pressure, so you can easily imagine the Mariana Trench as one of the most unfriendly places in the world. However, despite all this, life still somehow continues to exist there - and not just barely survive, but actually thrive, thanks to which a full-fledged ecosystem has appeared there.

Life at such a depth is extremely difficult - eternal cold, impenetrable darkness and enormous pressure will not allow you to exist in peace. Some creatures, such as the anglerfish, create their own light to attract prey or mates. Others, such as the hammerhead, have developed huge eyes to capture as much light as possible, reaching incredible depths. Other creatures are simply trying to hide from everyone, and to achieve this they turn translucent or red (the red color absorbs all the blue light that manages to make its way to the bottom of the cavity).

Cold protection

It is also worth noting that all creatures living at the bottom of the Mariana Trench need to cope with cold and pressure. Protection from cold is provided by fats that form the lining of the creature's body cells. If this process is not monitored, the membranes may crack and cease to protect the body. To combat this, these creatures have acquired an impressive supply of unsaturated fats in their membranes. With the help of these fats, the membranes always remain in a liquid state and do not crack. But is this enough to survive in one of the deepest places on the planet?

What is the Mariana Trench like?

The Mariana Trench is shaped like a horseshoe and its length is 2,550 kilometers. It is located in the eastern Pacific Ocean and is about 69 kilometers wide. The most deep point The depression was discovered near the southern end of the canyon in 1875 - the depth there was 8184 meters. A lot of time has passed since then, and with the help of an echo sounder more accurate data was obtained: it turns out that the deepest point has an even greater depth, 10994 meters. It was named “Challenger Deep” in honor of the ship that made that very first measurement.

Human immersion

However, about 100 years have passed since that moment - and only then for the first time a person plunged to such a depth. In 1960, Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh set off in the bathyscaphe Trieste to conquer the depths of the Mariana Trench. Trieste used gasoline as fuel and iron structures as ballast. The bathyscaphe took 4 hours and 47 minutes to reach a depth of 10,916 meters. It was then that the fact that life still exists at such depths was first confirmed. Piccard reported that he then saw a “flat fish,” although in fact it turned out that he only noticed a sea cucumber.

Who lives at the bottom of the ocean?

However, not only sea cucumbers are found at the bottom of the depression. Along with them live large single-celled organisms known as foraminifera - they are giant amoebas that can grow up to 10 centimeters in length. Under normal conditions, these organisms create shells of calcium carbonate, but at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, where the pressure is a thousand times greater than on the surface, calcium carbonate dissolves. This means that these organisms have to use proteins, organic polymers and sand to create their shells. Also living at the bottom of the Mariana Trench are shrimp and other crustaceans known as amphipods. The largest amphipods look like giant albino woodlice and can be found in the Challenger Deep.

Food at the bottom

Considering that sunlight does not reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench, another question arises: what do these organisms eat? Bacteria manage to survive at such depths because they feed on methane and sulfur that emerge from the earth's crust, and some organisms feed on these bacteria. But many rely on what is called "sea snow" - tiny pieces of detritus that reach the bottom from the surface. One of the most striking examples and the richest sources of food are the carcasses of dead whales, which as a result end up on the ocean floor.

Fishes in the Trench

But what about fish? The deepest fish in the Mariana Trench was discovered only in 2014 at a depth of 8143 meters. An unknown ghostly white subspecies of Liparidae with wide wing-like fins and an eel-like tail was recorded several times by cameras that plunged into the depths of the depression. However, scientists believe this depth is likely the limit of where the fish can survive. This means that there cannot be fish at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, since the conditions there do not correspond to the body structure of vertebrate species.

Now anyone can watch the fantastic underwater world of the Mariana Trench captured on video, deep place on our planet, or even enjoy a live video broadcast from an 11-kilometer depth. But until relatively recently, the Mariana Trench was considered the most unexplored point on the map of the Earth.

Sensational discovery by the Challenger team

We also know from the school curriculum that the most high point earth's surface is the peak of Mount Everest (8848 m), but the lowest is hidden under the waters of the Pacific Ocean and is located at the bottom of the Mariana Trench (10994 m). We know quite a lot about Everest; climbers have conquered its peak more than once; there are enough photographs of this mountain taken both from the ground and from space. If Everest is all in plain sight and does not pose any mystery to scientists, then the depths of the Mariana Trench keep many secrets, because getting to its bottom requires this moment Only three daredevils succeeded.

The Mariana Trench is located in the western part of the Pacific Ocean; it got its name from the Mariana Islands, which are located next to it. This uniquely deep place on the seabed has received the status of a US national monument; fishing and mining are prohibited here; in fact, it is a huge marine reserve. The shape of the depression is similar to a huge crescent, reaching 2550 km in length and 69 km in width. The bottom of the depression has a width of 1 to 5 km. The deepest point of the depression (10,994 m below sea level) was named “Challenger Deep” in honor of the British ship of the same name.

The honor of discovering the Mariana Trench belongs to the team of the British research vessel Challenger, which in 1872 carried out depth measurements at a number of points in the Pacific Ocean. When the ship found itself in the area of ​​​​the Mariana Islands, during the next depth measurement a hitch arose: the kilometer-long rope all went overboard, but it was not possible to reach the bottom. At the captain’s direction, a couple more kilometer sections were added to the rope, but, to everyone’s surprise, they were not enough and had to be added again and again. Then it was possible to establish a depth of 8367 meters, which, as it became known later, was significantly different from the real one. However, the underestimated value was quite enough to understand: the deepest place has been discovered in the World Ocean.

It is amazing that already in the 20th century, in 1951, it was the British who, using a deep-sea echo sounder, clarified the data of their compatriots, this time maximum depth The depression was more significant - 10,863 meters. Six years later, Soviet scientists began studying the Mariana Trench, arriving in this area of ​​the Pacific Ocean on the research vessel Vityaz. Using special equipment, they recorded the maximum depth of the depression at 11,022 meters, and most importantly, they were able to establish the presence of life at a depth of about 7,000 meters. It is worth noting that in the scientific world at that time there was an opinion that due to the monstrous pressure and lack of light at such depths, there were no manifestations of life.

Dive into the world of silence and darkness

In 1960, people visited the bottom of the depression for the first time. How difficult and dangerous such a dive was can be judged by the colossal water pressure, which at the lowest point of the depression is 1072 times higher than the average atmospheric pressure. The dive to the bottom of the depression using the Trieste bathyscaphe was made by US Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh and researcher Jacques Picard. Bathyscaphe "Trieste" with walls 13 cm thick was created in the Italian city of the same name and was a rather massive structure.

They lowered the submersible to the bottom for five long hours; Despite such a long descent, the researchers spent only 20 minutes at the bottom at a depth of 10,911 meters; it took them about 3 hours to rise. Within minutes of being in the abyss, Walsh and Picard were able to make a very impressive discovery: they saw two 30-centimeter flat fish, similar to flounder, that swam past their porthole. Their presence at such a depth became a real scientific sensation!

In addition to the discovery of the presence of life at such a mind-boggling depth, Jacques Piccard was able to experimentally refute the then prevailing opinion that at depths of more than 6000 m there is no upward movement of water masses. In terms of ecology, this was a major discovery, because some nuclear powers were planning to bury radioactive waste in the Mariana Trench. It turns out that Picard prevented large-scale radioactive contamination of the Pacific Ocean!

After the dive of Walsh and Picard, for a long period only unmanned automatic bathyscaphes descended into the Mariana Trench, and there were only a few of them, because they were very expensive. For example, on May 31, 2009, the American deep-sea vehicle Nereus reached the bottom of the Mariana Trench. He not only took underwater photography and video at incredible depths, but also took soil samples. The instruments of the deep-sea vehicle recorded the depth it reached at 10,902 meters.

On March 26, 2012, a man again found himself at the bottom of the Mariana Trench; it was the famous director, creator of the legendary film “Titanic,” James Cameron.

He explained his decision to make such a dangerous journey to the “bottom of the Earth” as follows: “Almost everything on the earth’s land has been explored. In space, bosses prefer to send people circling around the Earth, and send machine guns to other planets. For the joys of discovering the unknown, there is only one field of activity left - the ocean. Only about 3% of its water volume has been studied, and what’s next is unknown.”

Cameron made a dive on the DeepSea Challenge bathyscaphe, it was not very comfortable, the researcher was in a half-bent state for a long time, since the diameter of the internal space of the device was only about 109 cm. The bathyscaphe, equipped with powerful cameras and unique equipment, allowed the popular director to film fantastic landscapes of himself deepest place on the planet. Later together with The National Geographic James Cameron has created a fascinating documentary called "Challenging the Abyss".

It is worth noting that while at the bottom deepest depression world, Cameron saw neither monsters, nor representatives of an underwater civilization, nor an alien base. However, he literally looked into the eyes of the Challenger Abyss. According to him, during his short journey he experienced sensations indescribable in words. The ocean floor seemed to him not only deserted, but somehow “lunar... lonely.” He experienced a real shock from the feeling of “complete isolation from all humanity.” True, problems with the equipment of the bathyscaphe may have interrupted the “hypnotic” effect of the abyss on the famous director in time, and he rose to the surface among the people.

Inhabitants of the Mariana Trench

Behind last years During the exploration of the Mariana Trench, many discoveries were made. For example, in bottom soil samples taken by Cameron, scientists found more than 20 thousand of a wide variety of microorganisms. Among the inhabitants of the depression there are also giant 10-centimeter amoebas, called xenophyophores. According to scientists, single-celled amoebas most likely reached such incredible sizes due to the rather hostile environment at a depth of 10.6 km in which they are forced to live. For some reason, high pressure, cold water and lack of light clearly benefited them, contributing to their gigantism.

Mollusks were also discovered in the Mariana Trench. It is unclear how their shells withstand enormous water pressure, but they feel very comfortable at depth, and are located next to hydrothermal vents that emit hydrogen sulfide, which is lethal to ordinary mollusks. However, local mollusks, having demonstrated incredible abilities for chemistry, somehow adapted to process this destructive gas into protein, which allowed them to live where, at first
look, it’s impossible to live.

Many of the inhabitants of the Mariana Trench are quite unusual. For example, scientists discovered here a fish with a transparent head, in the center of which are its eyes. Thus, during the course of evolution, the fish’s eyes received reliable protection from possible injury. At great depths there are many bizarre and sometimes even scary fish; here we managed to capture on video a fantastically beautiful jellyfish. Of course, we don’t yet know all the inhabitants of the Mariana Trench; in this regard, scientists still have many discoveries to make.

There is a lot of interesting things in this mysterious place for geologists. Thus, in a depression at a depth of 414 meters, the Daikoku volcano was discovered, in the crater of which there is a lake of seething molten sulfur right under the water. As scientists say, the only analogue of such a lake known to them is only on Jupiter’s satellite, Io. Also in the Mariana Trench, scientists found the only underwater source of liquid on earth. carbon dioxide, called "Champagne" in honor of the famous French
alcoholic drink. There are also so-called black smokers in the depression; these are hydrothermal springs operating at a depth of about 2 kilometers, thanks to which the water temperature in the Mariana Trench is maintained within fairly favorable limits - from 1 to 4 degrees Celsius.

There are many amazing places of this world, which have not yet been explored by man. It turns out that only 5% of the ocean area is subject to science, the rest remains a mystery to it, shrouded in darkness. One of these mysterious places is the Mariana Trench, the depth of which is the greatest among all explored areas of the seabed. Mariana Trench is another name for the place.

Under the thickness of sea water, the pressure is a thousand times higher than the pressure that is recorded in normal sea space. But high-tech devices and caring risk-takers helped us learn at least a little about the deep crevice. The Pacific Ocean is a true nature reserve, not only home to exotic, unique animals, but also to remarkable topographical features.

Everyone knows about the existence of this amazing object. Information about it is given to us from a young age, but over time we forget both the numbers and interesting facts about this strange and enchanting place. We decided to remind you where the Mariana Trench is and what it is. You can learn a lot about the ocean surface object.

The heroine of our article is named after the islands that are located near the “bottom of the earth”. It is located along the islands. In the Mariana Trench, the depth of which, it would seem, is capable of destroying all life, some microorganisms live that have mutated due to high pressure. This tectonic fault has steep slopes - about 8⁰. Below is a wide area about 5 km, which is divided by stone thresholds. The pressure at the very bottom is 108.6 MPa - more than anywhere else on planet Earth.

History of the study of the phenomenon

1872 is considered the date of discovery of the Mariana Trench; photographs of the object appear a little later. The tectonic fault was explored as best as possible by the British on a military corvette in 1951. The depth of the Mariana Trench becomes known - 10863 meters. Since it was the Challenger ship that sank to the very bottom, to the deepest point, it began to be called the “Challenger Abyss.”

Soviet scientists are joining the study. Since 1957, the scientific vessel Vityaz begins to plow the ocean and discovers that the depth of the Mariana Trench is even greater than previously stated - more than 11 kilometers. Our marine researchers established the fact of life at great depths, destroying the scientific stereotypes of that time. Subsequently, the ship was written off as a museum value. Experiments continue to this day. Five years ago, the “bottom of the world” was visited by the Nereus automatic apparatus, which dropped 11 km below ocean level, and took new photos and videos.

The dive to the “bottom of the Earth” takes at least five hours. The ascent is somewhat faster. You cannot stay at the very bottom for more than 12 minutes, taking into account the technology that was at the disposal of the researchers of that time. Cosmic sums have to be allocated for the study of such terrestrial objects, so work is proceeding slowly.

Where is it

The Mariana Trench is located on the western Pacific Ocean, two hundred meters from the islands of the same name. It looks like a crescent-shaped chasm, its length is more than 2550 km, and its width reaches almost 70 km.

The results of the study showed that the depth in the Mariana Trench is about 11 thousand meters. Everest reaches only 8840 m. If you need a comparison, the highest mountain on Earth can be turned upside down and placed entirely at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, but there will still be more than 2 km of water above the top. We are talking only about height; the width of the depression and the mountain do not coincide.

Interesting facts and stories

• It's hot there. It turns out it’s not cold at this crazy depth. The thermometer column shows a positive value - up to 4⁰С. There are hot springs in the gorge, they make the water a hundred points hotter. High pressure prevents the water column from boiling.

• Population. Ignoring the unsuitable conditions for life, the inhabitants of the “bottom of the world” settled down well. Huge xenophyophore amoebas live there - up to 10 cm. These are protozoa, but they have mutated due to hot water and pressure. Amoebas are able to survive in an environment filled with dangerous chemical elements.

• Mollusks also became inhabitants of the Mariana Trench, although the form of the cover should have simply cracked under great pressure. But the hot springs contain serpentine, rich in hydrogen and methane. It is these substances that allow mollusks to survive. They were able to adapt even to hydrogen sulfide emissions, converting them into protein compounds.

• The origin of life on the planet. Champagne Key on the ocean floor is a unique area underwater that contains liquid CO2. It forms specific bubbles, similar to those found in a glass of sparkling wine. Scientists have suggested that a primary form of life could have appeared around this key at one time. This is due to the presence of all necessary substances.

• The depression is slimy. There's no sand or anything like that. At the very bottom there is a layer of small shells and dead plankton accumulated over thousands of years. The pressure makes this mass look like mucus.

• Sulfur in a liquid aggregate state. The Mariana Trench, which is not so easy to photograph, is rich in various geoformations. At a depth of more than 400 meters, there is a whole volcano on the way to it. Near Daikoku is located big lake, filled with liquid sulfur, which cannot be found anywhere else on Earth. The substance boils at a temperature of 187⁰C, and underneath it is believed to be an even larger layer of liquid sulfur, which could also contribute to the formation of life on our planet.

• There are bridges there. In 2011, a group of research scientists discovered stone bridges in the Mariana Trench. Four structures stretch between the abyss for almost 70 km. They are located between two tectonic plates - the Pacific and the Philippine. One of them was discovered even earlier, in the 80s of the 20th century. It is very high, more than 2.5 km.

• The first person at such depth. Only three people have had the courage to dive into the Mariana Trench since its discovery in 1875. The first was an American, Lieutenant Don Walsh, and with him the scientist Jacques Piccard in 1960. The dive took place on the Challenger. In 2012, film director James Cameron visited the Mariana Trench in a submersible, and took a photo of it as a souvenir. The man was left with a painful impression of complete loneliness from this place

.

• The mystery of sawn cables. The incredible depths are terrifying. And the first explorers were afraid of unprecedented monsters inside the Mariana Trench. The first fact of collision with the unknown happened at the moment of the Glomar Challenger dive. The recorder began to record a metallic sound, like a grinding sound, and shadows appearing around the ship. The scientists became concerned about the expensive titanium equipment in the shape of a hedgehog, and the decision was made to lift the research vessel onto the ship. After extraction, the “hedgehog” turned out to be damaged, the 20-centimeter titanium cables were bent, or rather, half sawed through. There was a complete impression that someone wanted to stop the ship at depth.

• Prehistoric lizard. There was a hitch during the dive of the Highfish vessel with scientists on board. The device reached a depth of 7 kilometers and stopped. The researchers turned on the infrared camera. She suddenly snatched out of the ocean darkness a huge dinosaur that was biting into the submersible. They managed to drive him away with the help of an electric gun.

• The inhabitants of the Mariana Trench are protected by law. This is an American national monument, rightfully the largest nature reserve in the world. There are several restrictions on staying in this area. Mining is prohibited here, you can't fish, but you can swim.

The Mayan depression is inhabited by:

1. Scary and not so scary fish

2. Various octopuses

3. And other strange creatures

We are close to the fact that the Mariana Trench will soon become closer to to modern man. Perhaps in the near future there will even be tourism there. But for now, this option remains on par with the possibility of affordable space tourism. It is amazing how similar an terrestrial object is to distant stars in this respect. It is just as unexplored as the celestial bodies. But at least we know for sure that life exists in the Mariana Trench. According to a common hypothesis, it could have come from there. In this case, the study of the deepest place of the World Ocean acquires global significance.

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In honor of which it, in fact, got its name. The depression is a crescent-shaped ravine on the ocean floor with a length of 2,550 km. with an average width of 69 km. According to the latest measurements (2014), the maximum depth of the Mariana Trench is 10,984 m. This point is located at the southern end of the trench and is called the “Challenger Deep”. Challenger Deep).

The trench was formed at the junction of two lithospheric tectonic plates - the Pacific and Philippine. The Pacific plate is older and heavier. Over the course of millions of years, it “crept” under the younger Philippine Plate.

Opening

The Mariana Trench was discovered for the first time scientific expedition sailing ship " Challenger" This corvette, which was originally a warship, was converted into a scientific vessel in 1872 specifically for the Royal Society for the Advancement of Natural Sciences of London. The ship was equipped with biochemical laboratories, means for measuring depth, water temperature and soil sampling. That same year, in December, the ship set off for scientific research and spent three and a half years at sea, covering a distance of 70 thousand nautical miles. At the end of the expedition, which was recognized as one of the most scientifically successful since the famous geographical and scientific discoveries of the 16th century, over 4,000 new species of animals were described, in-depth studies of almost 500 underwater objects were carried out, and soil samples were taken from the most different corners world ocean.

Against the backdrop of the important scientific discoveries made by Challenger, the discovery of an underwater trench especially stood out, the depth of which amazes the imagination of even contemporaries, not to mention scientists of the 19th century. True, initial depth measurements showed that its depth was just over 8,000 m, but even this value was enough to talk about the discovery of the deepest point known to man on the planet.

The new trench was named the Mariana Trench - in honor of the nearby Mariana Islands, which in turn were named after Marianne of Austria, the Spanish queen, wife of King Philip IV of Spain.

Research into the Mariana Trench continued only in 1951. English hydrographic vessel Challenger II examined the trench using an echo sounder and found that its maximum depth was much greater than previously thought, amounting to 10,899 m. This point was given the name “Challenger Deep” in honor of the first expedition of 1872-1876.

Challenger Abyss

Challenger Abyss is a relatively small flat plain in the south of the Mariana Trench. Its length is 11 km and its width is about 1.6 km. Along its edges there are gentle slopes.

Its exact depth, which is called a meter per meter, is still unknown. This is due to the errors of the echo sounders and sonars themselves, the changing depth of the world's oceans, as well as the uncertainty that the bottom of the abyss itself remains motionless. In 2009, the American vessel RV Kilo Moana determined the depth to be 10,971 m with a probability of error of 22-55 m. Research in 2014 with improved multibeam echo sounders determined the depth to be 10,984. This is exactly what the value is recorded in reference books and is currently considered the closest to the real one.

Dives

Only four scientific vehicles visited the bottom of the Mariana Trench, and only two expeditions included people.

Project "Nekton"

The first descent into the Challenger Abyss took place in 1960 on a manned submersible " Trieste", named after the same name Italian city, where it was created. It was flown by an American US Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh and Swiss oceanographer Jacques Piccard. The device was designed by Jacques' father, Auguste Piccard, who already had experience in creating bathyscaphes.

Trieste made its first dive in 1953 in the Mediterranean Sea, where it reached a record depth of 3,150 m at that time. In total, the bathyscaphe made several dives between 1953 and 1957. and the experience of its operation has shown that it can dive to more serious depths.

Trieste was purchased by the US Navy in 1958 when the United States became interested in seabed exploration in the Pacific region, where some island states came de facto under its jurisdiction as the victorious country in World War II.

After some modifications, in particular further compaction of the outer part of the hull, Trieste began to be prepared for immersion in the Mariana Trench. Jacques Piccard remained the pilot of the bathyscaphe, since he had the most experience in piloting the Trier in particular and bathyscaphes in general. His companion was Don Walsh, a then-current US Navy lieutenant who served on a submarine and later became a famous scientist and naval specialist.

The project for the first dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench received a code name Project "Nekton", although this name did not catch on among the people.

The dive began on the morning of January 23, 1960 at 8:23 local time. To a depth of 8 km. the apparatus descended at a speed of 0.9 m/s, and then slowed down to 0.3 m/s. The researchers saw the bottom only at 13:06. Thus, the time of the first dive was almost 5 hours. The submersible stayed at the very bottom for only 20 minutes. During this time, the researchers measured the density and temperature of the water (it was +3.3ºС), measured the radioactive background, and observed an unknown fish similar to a flounder and a shrimp that suddenly appeared at the bottom. Also, based on the measured pressure, the diving depth was calculated, which was 11,521 m, which was later adjusted to 10,916 m.

While at the bottom of the Challenger Abyss we explored and had time to refresh ourselves with chocolate.

After this, the bathyscaphe was freed from ballast and the ascent began, which took less time - 3.5 hours.

Submersible "Kaiko"

Kaiko (Kaikō) - the second of four devices that reached the bottom of the Mariana Trench. But he visited there twice. This uninhabited remote-controlled underwater vehicle was created by the Japan Agency for Marine Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) and was intended to study the deep seabed. The device was equipped with three video cameras, as well as two manipulator arms controlled remotely from the surface.

He made more than 250 dives and made enormous contributions to science, but he made his most famous journey in 1995, diving to a depth of 10,911 m into the Challenger Deep. It took place on March 24 and samples of benthic extremophile organisms were brought to the surface - this is the name of animals capable of surviving in maximum conditions. extreme conditions environmental conditions.

Kayko returned to the Challenger Deep again a year later, in February 1996, and took samples of soil and microorganisms from the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Unfortunately, Kaiko was lost in 2003 after the cable connecting it to the carrier vessel broke.

Deep-sea submersible "Nereus"

Unmanned remote-controlled deep-sea vehicle " Nereus"(English) Nereus) closes the trio of devices that reached the bottom of the Mariana Trench. His dive took place in May 2009. Nereus reached a depth of 10,902 m. He was sent to the site of the very first expedition to the bottom of the Challenger Abyss. He stayed at the bottom for 10 hours, broadcasting live video from his cameras to the carrier ship, after which he collected water and soil samples and successfully returned to the surface.

The device was lost in 2014 during a dive into the Kermadec Trench at a depth of 9,900 m.

Deepsea Challenger

The last dive to the bottom of the Mariana Trench was made by the famous Canadian director James Cameron, inscribing itself not only in the history of cinema, but also in the history of great research. It happened on March 26, 2012 on a single-seat submersible Deepsea Challenger, built under the direction of Australian engineer Ron Alloon in collaboration with National Geographic and Rolex. The main objective of this dive was to collect documentary evidence of life at such extreme depths. From the soil samples taken, 68 new animal species were discovered. The director himself said that the only animal he saw at the bottom was an amphipod - an amphipod, similar to a small shrimp about 3 cm in length. The footage formed the basis documentary film, which tells the story of his dive into the Challenger Deep.

James Cameron became the third person on Earth to visit the bottom of the Mariana Trench. He set a diving speed record - his submersible reached a depth of 11 km. in less than two hours. He also became the first person to reach such a depth in a solo dive. He spent 6 hours at the bottom, which is also a record. Bathyscaphe Trieste was at the bottom for only 20 minutes.

Animal world

The first Trieste expedition reported with great surprise that there was life at the bottom of the Mariana Trench. Although it was previously believed that the existence of life in such conditions was simply not possible. According to Jacques Piccard, they saw at the bottom a fish resembling an ordinary flounder, about 30 cm long, as well as amphipod shrimp. Many marine biologists are skeptical that Trier's crew actually saw the fish, but they do not so much question the researchers' words as they are inclined to believe that they mistook a sea cucumber or other invertebrate for the fish.

During the second expedition, the Kaiko apparatus took soil samples and in fact found many tiny organisms capable of surviving in absolute darkness at temperatures close to 0°C and under monstrous pressure. There is not a single skeptic left who doubts the presence of life everywhere in the ocean, even in the most incredible conditions. However, it remained unclear how developed such deep-sea life was. Or are the only representatives of the Mariana Trench the simplest microorganisms, crustaceans and invertebrates?

In December 2014, a new species of sea slug was discovered - a family of deep-sea marine fish. The cameras recorded them at a depth of 8,145 m, which was an absolute record for fish at that time.

In the same year, cameras recorded several more species of huge crustaceans, differing from their shallow-sea relatives by deep-sea gigantism, which is generally inherent in many deep-sea species.

In May 2017, scientists reported the discovery of another new species of sea slug, which was discovered at a depth of 8,178 m.

All deep-sea inhabitants of the Mariana Trench are almost blind, slow and unpretentious animals capable of surviving in the most extreme conditions. Popular stories that the Challenger Deep is inhabited by marine animals, megalodon and other huge animals are nothing more than fables. The Mariana Trench is fraught with many secrets and mysteries, and new species of animals are no less interesting to scientists than relict animals known since the Paleozoic era. Being at such depths for millions of years, evolution has made them completely different from shallow-water species.

Current research and future dives

The Mariana Trench continues to attract the attention of scientists around the world, despite the high cost of research and its weak practical use. Ichthyologists are interested in new species of animals and their adaptive abilities. Geologists are interested in this region from the point of view of the processes occurring in lithospheric plates and the formation of underwater mountain ranges. Ordinary researchers simply dream of visiting the bottom of the deepest trench on our planet.

Several expeditions to the Mariana Trench are currently planned:

1. American company Triton Submarines develops and produces private underwater bathyscaphes. The newest model Triton 36000/3, consisting of a crew of 3 people, is planned to be sent to the Challenger Abyss in the near future. Its characteristics allow it to reach a depth of 11 km. in just 2 hours.

2. Company Virgin Oceanic(Virgin Oceanic), specializing in private shallow dives, is developing a single-person deep-sea vehicle that can deliver a passenger to the bottom of the trench in 2.5 hours.

3. American company DOER Marine working on a project" Deep Search"—one or two-seater submersible.

4. In 2017, famous Russian traveler Fedor Konyukhov announced that he plans to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

1. In 2009 it was created Maritime Marianas National Monument. It does not include the islands themselves, but only covers their marine territory, with an area of ​​more than 245 thousand km². Almost the entire Mariana Trench was included in the monument, although its deepest point, the Challenger Deep, was not included in it.

2. At the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the water column exerts a pressure of 1,086 bar. This is a thousand times more than standard atmospheric pressure.

3. Water compresses very poorly and at the bottom of the gutter its density increases by only 5%. This means 100 liters of ordinary water at a depth of 11 km. will occupy a volume of 95 liters.

4. Although the Mariana Trench is considered the deepest point on the planet, it is not the closest point to the center of the Earth. Our planet is not an ideal spherical shape, and its radius is approximately 25 km. less at the poles than at the equator. Therefore, the deepest point on the bottom of the Arctic Ocean is 13 km. closer to the center of the Earth than in the Challenger Abyss.

5. The Mariana Trench (and other deep-sea trenches) have been proposed to be used as nuclear waste cemeteries. It is assumed that the movement of plates will “push” waste under the tectonic plate deeper into the Earth. The proposal is not without logic, but the dumping of nuclear waste is prohibited by international law. In addition, zones of junctions of lithospheric plates give rise to earthquakes of enormous force, the consequences of which are unpredictable for buried waste.