Science James Cameron completes his solo submarine dive to the deepest point in the world - Page 2

Deberg_1990 · 03-26-2012, 12:14 PM

Incredible. Balls of Steel

http://news.yahoo.com/director-camer...204339087.html

"Titanic" director James Cameron returned to the surface Monday after a solo submarine dive to the deepest point in the world's oceans that was hailed as the ultimate test of "man and his machine."

[Related: James Cameron biography]

Cameron plunged about seven miles (11 kilometers) to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in the western Pacific, where temperatures are barely above freezing and the pressure is a crushing thousand times that at sea level.

Speaking after the mission, the filmmaker-explorer described a barren "completely alien world" on the ocean floor, not unlike the surface of the moon.

[Related: Earth's deepest locations]

It was a "very lunar, very desolate place. Very isolated," Cameron said.

"I felt like I, in the space of one day, had gone to another planet and come back," he said, describing the ocean floor as a "completely featureless, alien world."

The acclaimed film director described the experience of hurtling down the "yawning chasm" of the ocean: "Falling through darkness -- that's something that a robot can't describe."

The voyage was the first manned expedition to the trench in more than half a century and Cameron said it was the culmination of more than seven years of planning.

"Most importantly, though, is the significance of pushing the boundaries of where humans can go, what they can see and how they can interpret it," he said in a statement.

The journey down to the Challenger Deep valley of the Mariana Trench, which lies southwest of Guam, took two hours and 36 minutes, organizers said.

He told reporters in a phone press conference that he was at the bottom of the ocean for about a little more than two and a half hours, and had to cut short the planned stay of six hours because of problems with the ocean craft's hydraulics system.

Cameron said that being able to make the journey was "the culmination from my perspective of a lifelong dream," and that he hopes to be able to continue to marry his love of exploring the depths of the sea with his work as a director.

He collected samples for research in marine biology, microbiology, astrobiology, marine geology and geophysics, and captured photographs and 3D moving images.

Cameron is the first person to make a solo dive to the Pacific Ocean trench. The last dive of any kind there was made by a two-man team in a relatively brief expedition back in 1960.

After a faster-than-expected, roughly 70-minute ascent, Cameron's sub, bobbing in the open ocean, was spotted by helicopter and plucked from the Pacific by a research ship's crane, organizers said.

Expedition physician Joe MacInnis called Cameron's descent "the ultimate test of a man and his machine."

Mission partner the National Geographic said Cameron had reached a depth of 35,756 feet (10,898 meters) at 7:52 am Monday (2152 GMT Sunday) in his specially designed submersible the Deepsea Challenger.

Because of its extreme depth, the Mariana Trench is cloaked in perpetual darkness and the temperature is just a few degrees above freezing.

The water pressure at the bottom is a crushing eight tons per square inch -- or about a thousand times the standard atmospheric pressure at sea level.

The images collected by Cameron will be used to make a 3-D feature film, which is expected to be broadcast on the National Geographic Channel.

Cameron's tools included a sediment sampler, a robotic claw, a "slurp gun" for sucking up small sea creatures for study at the surface, and temperature, salinity, and pressure gauges.

The submersible that Cameron designed -- a "vertical torpedo" of sorts -- had already successfully completed an unpiloted dive on Friday.

In 1960, a two-man crew aboard the US Navy submersible Trieste -- then the only humans to have reached Challenger Deep -- spent just 20 minutes on the bottom, but their view was obscured by silt stirred up when they landed.

Cameron, 57, had been running several miles a day, practicing yoga to increase his flexibility for the dive in the sub's cramped quarters and studying deep-ocean science.

Cameron already has 72 dives under his belt, including 12 to film the blockbuster "Titanic."

The Mariana Trench, a crescent-shaped scar in the Earth's crust, measures more than 1,500 miles (2,550 kilometers) long and 43 miles (69 kilometers) wide on average.

Demonpenz · 03-26-2012, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PunkinDrublic

They should refuse to help him up until he apologizes for Titanic.

Titanic was pretty good.

**BigMeatballDave** · 03-26-2012, 01:13 PM

Can't wait to see footage from this.

Frazod · 03-26-2012, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave

Can't wait to see footage from this.

1. Close your eyes.

2. Keep them closed.

InChiefsHeaven · 03-26-2012, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Satanic Goat

This is what happens when you're filthy rich and have nothing better to do.

"Welp, time to go to the bottom of the ocean."

Neat hobby.

Better than doing blow off of hookers asses...I think it's pretty friggin' cool. I mean, yeah he's got the money but also the guts and the brains...I'd imagine it's a little more difficult than taking an elevator...

InChiefsHeaven · 03-26-2012, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Demonpenz

Titanic was pretty good.

The last hour anyway...

Sofa King · 03-26-2012, 01:20 PM

The footage is actually pretty damn sweet. He operates those controls pretty good IMO. It takes a little bit to load. Worth the wait.

Fish · 03-26-2012, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Demonpenz

Titanic was pretty good.

For the 39 seconds in which Kate Winslet had her top off at least...

PunkinDrublic · 03-26-2012, 01:37 PM

I'd rather it be Michael Bey.

**Old Dog** · 03-26-2012, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scho63

It really is incredible to think how deep he was.....

that's what she said /CP

Radar Chief · 03-26-2012, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by InChiefsHell

The last hour anyway...

Best part of the show is when Kate shoved Leo’s frozen, lifeless body off to the briny deep.

keg in kc · 03-26-2012, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Satanic Goat

This is what happens when you're filthy rich and have nothing better to do.

"Welp, time to go to the bottom of the ocean."

Neat hobby.

As opposed to when you're dirt poor and have nothing better to do.

"Welp, time to get online again."

Hammock Parties · 03-26-2012, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by keg in kc

As opposed to when you're dirt poor and have nothing better to do.

"Welp, time to get online again."

Basically, yeah.

**Rain Man** · 03-26-2012, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by keg in kc

As opposed to when you're dirt poor and have nothing better to do.

"Welp, time to get online again."

I have been to the deepest, darkest depths of Chiefsplanet, and believe me, it's more dangerous and scary than any submarine.

Kerberos · 03-26-2012, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jiveturkey

WTF is this thing!

This was beside the picture.

This undated handout photo provided by NOAA shows a deep-chimaera, a boneless fish that is a distant evolutionary relative to modern day sharks taken by an unmanned submersible on NOAA’s Okeanos Explorer in a 2010 in deep water off of Indonesia. These are the type of fish that are seen at great depths in the world’s oceans and might be the type director/explorer James Cameron could see on the way to the deepest spot on Earth, the Mariana Trench. ...

InChiefsHeaven · 03-26-2012, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sofa King

The footage is actually pretty damn sweet. He operates those controls pretty good IMO. It takes a little bit to load. Worth the wait.

That video just won't load!

03-26-2012, 12:14 PM
Deberg_1990 In Search of a Life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: San Antonio Tx. Casino cash: $94454	James Cameron completes his solo submarine dive to the deepest point in the world Incredible. Balls of Steel http://news.yahoo.com/director-camer...204339087.html "Titanic" director James Cameron returned to the surface Monday after a solo submarine dive to the deepest point in the world's oceans that was hailed as the ultimate test of "man and his machine." [Related: James Cameron biography] Cameron plunged about seven miles (11 kilometers) to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in the western Pacific, where temperatures are barely above freezing and the pressure is a crushing thousand times that at sea level. Speaking after the mission, the filmmaker-explorer described a barren "completely alien world" on the ocean floor, not unlike the surface of the moon. [Related: Earth's deepest locations] It was a "very lunar, very desolate place. Very isolated," Cameron said. "I felt like I, in the space of one day, had gone to another planet and come back," he said, describing the ocean floor as a "completely featureless, alien world." The acclaimed film director described the experience of hurtling down the "yawning chasm" of the ocean: "Falling through darkness -- that's something that a robot can't describe." The voyage was the first manned expedition to the trench in more than half a century and Cameron said it was the culmination of more than seven years of planning. "Most importantly, though, is the significance of pushing the boundaries of where humans can go, what they can see and how they can interpret it," he said in a statement. The journey down to the Challenger Deep valley of the Mariana Trench, which lies southwest of Guam, took two hours and 36 minutes, organizers said. He told reporters in a phone press conference that he was at the bottom of the ocean for about a little more than two and a half hours, and had to cut short the planned stay of six hours because of problems with the ocean craft's hydraulics system. Cameron said that being able to make the journey was "the culmination from my perspective of a lifelong dream," and that he hopes to be able to continue to marry his love of exploring the depths of the sea with his work as a director. He collected samples for research in marine biology, microbiology, astrobiology, marine geology and geophysics, and captured photographs and 3D moving images. Cameron is the first person to make a solo dive to the Pacific Ocean trench. The last dive of any kind there was made by a two-man team in a relatively brief expedition back in 1960. After a faster-than-expected, roughly 70-minute ascent, Cameron's sub, bobbing in the open ocean, was spotted by helicopter and plucked from the Pacific by a research ship's crane, organizers said. Expedition physician Joe MacInnis called Cameron's descent "the ultimate test of a man and his machine." Mission partner the National Geographic said Cameron had reached a depth of 35,756 feet (10,898 meters) at 7:52 am Monday (2152 GMT Sunday) in his specially designed submersible the Deepsea Challenger. Because of its extreme depth, the Mariana Trench is cloaked in perpetual darkness and the temperature is just a few degrees above freezing. The water pressure at the bottom is a crushing eight tons per square inch -- or about a thousand times the standard atmospheric pressure at sea level. The images collected by Cameron will be used to make a 3-D feature film, which is expected to be broadcast on the National Geographic Channel. Cameron's tools included a sediment sampler, a robotic claw, a "slurp gun" for sucking up small sea creatures for study at the surface, and temperature, salinity, and pressure gauges. The submersible that Cameron designed -- a "vertical torpedo" of sorts -- had already successfully completed an unpiloted dive on Friday. In 1960, a two-man crew aboard the US Navy submersible Trieste -- then the only humans to have reached Challenger Deep -- spent just 20 minutes on the bottom, but their view was obscured by silt stirred up when they landed. Cameron, 57, had been running several miles a day, practicing yoga to increase his flexibility for the dive in the sub's cramped quarters and studying deep-ocean science. Cameron already has 72 dives under his belt, including 12 to film the blockbuster "Titanic." The Mariana Trench, a crescent-shaped scar in the Earth's crust, measures more than 1,500 miles (2,550 kilometers) long and 43 miles (69 kilometers) wide on average.
Posts: 68,685

03-26-2012, 01:13 PM	#17
BigMeatballDave GBM 8-12-15 Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Dayton, Oh. Casino cash: $10052154	Can't wait to see footage from this.
Posts: 59,997

03-26-2012, 01:20 PM	#21
Sofa King Bump it Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: South Dakota Casino cash: $-390000 VARSITY	The footage is actually pretty damn sweet. He operates those controls pretty good IMO. It takes a little bit to load. Worth the wait.
Posts: 23,465

03-26-2012, 01:37 PM	#23
PunkinDrublic Stay down bitch! Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Plano, TX Casino cash: $4340670	I'd rather it be Michael Bey. __________________ Disappointing my parents since 1976
Posts: 9,555