BEIRUT, LEBANON (12:30 P.M.) – A Chinese craft, with a three-man crew, has set a world record after descending to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest point in the ocean.
The Chinese submarine broke a world record after diving 10,909 meters (35,790 feet), collecting samples and wandering to the bottom.
According to the Chinese CCTV agency, it took the vehicle four hours to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench, to be the deepest manned dive recorded to this day.
The mission is working to discover the natural resources available in the depths of the sea, by drawing what was called a “treasure map”, the Daily Mail reported.
The Chinese submarine collected samples for more than six hours in the depths of the Mariana Trench, and took pictures and documented the surrounding landscape inside it.
The Chinese have worked since 2016 to develop the submarine “Fendouzhe” and the manufacturing operations ended in February, as they began its exploration voyages in the world’s oceans.
The submarine was able to conduct 25 research missions during a trial period of three months, all of which were successfully completed, the Sputnik News Agency reported, calling it a “terrifying achievement”.
The Mariana Trench is the deepest point on Earth and is located in the western Pacific Ocean, east of the Northern Mariana Islands.
The trench is about 2,550 km long, 70 km wide and is rectangular in shape.
Source: Sputnik, CCTV, Daily Mail