Introduction

Introduction of IDSSE

The Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering (IDSSE) within the Chinese Academy of Sciences is a unique national oceanographic research entity in China devoted to conducting deep-sea scientific research and developing deep-sea technologies. IDSSE was established in 2016 and is dedicated to advancing deep-sea knowledge and understanding through a commitment to excellence in deep-sea, research, exploration, and education.

IDSSE is organized with three main parts: Deep-sea Science Division, Deep-sea Engineering and Technology Division, and Marine Equipment and Operation Management Center. We are committed to break through new frontiers of deep-sea research, the barriers between marine science, deep-sea engineering technology and scientific test in the sea, in order to create a shared and open platform in China and even in the world, and build an integrated system of scientific research, engineering technology and deep sea operations.

Deep-sea Science Division has a community of Department of Deep-sea Biology, Department of Deep-sea Geology & Geochemistry, Department of Deep-sea Geophysics & Resources, Department of Ocean Circulation Observation & Numerical Modelling, Department of Experimental Study under Deep-sea Extreme Conditions, Department of Extraterrestrial Ocean Systems, Department of Marine Mammals and Marine Bioacoustics, and Analysis and Test Center certified by CAS Institutional Center for Shared Technologies and Facilities.

Deep-sea Engineering and Technology Division has a community of Department of Deep-sea Exploration Technology, Department of Deep-sea Information Technology, Department of Deep-sea Resource Development, Departnent Of Deep-Sea Submersible Technology, Department of Deep-sea Imaging Technology, Department of Deep-sea Software Evaluation and R&D, and Deep-sea Engineering and Testing Laboratory.

IDSSE manages and operates several ocean platforms, including the research vessels Tansuoyihao and Tansuoerhao, with the capacity to support long-term missions worldwide. IDSSE is also the operator and maintainer of the two most notable human-occupied vehicles, HOV Shenhaiyongshi (max operating depth of 4500 meters) and HOV Fendouzhe (full-ocean-depth). With such fleet, in 2021, IDSSE made the deepest manned dive record to the Challenger Deep of Mariana Trench, the deepest point in the world’s ocean. Ever since her commission in 2021, HOV Fendouzhe has brought a total of 32 national and international scientists to depths of exceeding 10,000 meters, the highest number of dives and passengers as of to-date.

Currently, with support from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Ministry of Science and Technology, IDSSE is pursuing the “Global Trench Exploration and Diving Program (Global TREnD)”, an international collaborative initiative, being open to the world’s deep-sea community and aiming to advance humanity’s understanding of geology, biology, and their interactions at the deepest parts of the Earth’s oceans. 


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