Barely a week since successfully completing sea trials after a three twelvemonth reprieve , the venerable research sub Alvin is already earning back the $ 42 million in hardware upgrades and technology retrofit it ’s received — showing off its spacious new three - gang cabin with a quick dive to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico . But this is no pleasure cruise .
“ Alvin is functionally a newfangled fomite , ” said Harvard University scientist Peter Girguis of the retrofitted zep . The $ 42 million upgrade admit automatic command and control social occasion , a higher shelling capacity , high - definition cameras , and a new advancing lateral thruster .
“ I think the young bid - and - dominance systems make it easy for pilot burner to manage the hero sandwich , so they can participate more in the diving , rather than just push back , ” said Susan Humphris , the WHOI scientist who supervised the upgrade . “ The biggest vantage of the lateral thruster is that it enables Alvin to move sideways like a crabby person , saving worthful time in the sub . In the past , pilots had to back up and then go fore to move laterally . ”
Yesterday , Alvin set off for the 3,30o - foot depths of the Gulf of Mexico for a survey of the environment surrounding the Deep Horizon rock oil spillway site . With the Gulf oil catastrophe ’s fourth day of remembrance quickly near , researchers from a number of local universities , led by Marine science prof Samantha “ Mandy ” Joye of the University of Georgia , are employ Alvin to channel observe - up sample survey to see if the expanse has recovered at all since the 2010 blowout .
“ In the diving in the hoagy , we ’ll really be able to see the diversity of animal on the bottom and compare this to what a natural soft bottom community would look like , ” Joye toldThe Sun Herald . “ Our employment is aimed at sympathise the longsighted - condition impacts of the 2010 blowout and sites within 20 to 100 nautical air mile of the wellhead . ”
While the Alvin is at ocean , it will also be used by Kang Ding , a Senior Research Associate at the University of Minnesota , to take in epitome urine pH sample canisters that had been left near the region ’s legion dusty - water methane seeps . The now 50 - class - older grinder is expected to make more than two dozen dives during the current hostile expedition , which will revert to port wine on April 22 . Here ’s to hop it survives another 50 years of body of work . [ WHOIviaSFGate – Wired ]
https://gizmodo.com/how-a-classic-deep-sea-robot-will-sweep-98-percent-of-t-5943421
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