Manned submersible starts 5th dive
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E-mail China.org.cn, June 27, 2012
China's manned submersible, Jiaolong, began another dive in the Mariana Trench Wednesday morning, targeting a depth between 7,000 to 7,100 meters below the sea level of the Pacific Ocean.
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Chinese manned submersible starts 5th dive.[ Photo / Xinhua ] |
Jiaolong, named after a dragon in Chinese mythology, refreshed the national dive record on Sunday with 7,020-meters dive below sea level during its fourth dive into the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the world's oceans.
Jiaolong arrived at the area earlier this month and had since succeeded in reaching depths of 6,671, 6,965 and 6,963 meters in its first three dives from June 15 to 22, easily surpassing the previous national record of 5,188 meters it set last July.
The Jiaolong enabled China to join the ranks of deep-sea faring countries. The United States, Japan, France and Russia currently lead the world in the development of deep-sea exploration technology, each possessing their own submersibles and support bases.
Breaking the 7,000-meter mark means China has obtained the capability of exploring 99.8 percent of the deep ocean with manned submersibles.
