James Cameron Completes Dive to Bottom of Mariana Trench

This past weekend, film director James Cameron became the third person ever to dive to the deepest accessible point on earth, the Mariana Trench. Located in the western portion of the Pacific Ocean (east of Philippines), the deepest recorded point of the Mariana Trench is 10,990 meters (6.83 miles) below the surface. The pressure at that depth is equivalent to the pressure of 1,000 atmospheres – picture 3 full-sized SUVs sitting on one of your toes.

Other fun stats. A scuba diver will never go lower than 40 – 50 meters on a dive, and after 1,000 meters, sunlight is unable to penetrate through. The average depth of all the oceans is 4,267 meters, and the wreckage of the RMS Titanic is located about 3,784 meters underwater. Well before the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the pressure is so extreme that a piercing of the sub’s chassis would result in instant implosion. I wonder if Cameron thought about that on his descent? Nah.

The reason for Cameron taking the dive isn’t just for kicks. Rather, science is at the forefront. For years, he and his team have constructed the submarine that he used for the dive, and he wasn’t alone. There are other teams working on their own subs as well, including one sponsored by Virigin’s Sir Richard Branson and another sponsored by Google’s Eric Schmidt.

Despite the immense pressure at such depths, there do exist some lifeforms at the deepest point of the Mariana Trench. At the moment, no images exist from the dive, but Cameron will be producing a documentary on it, so we’re sure to learn a lot at that time. It’ll be interesting to see if previously unknown lifeforms are discovered thanks to this trip.

The first trip to the bottom was conducted in 1960 by US Navy Lt Don Walsh and Swiss oceanographer Jacques Piccard, but due to their sub design and the amount of silt at the bottom, barely anything could be seen. Cameron’s journey down will be the first time ever we will be able to get a clear view of what’s at the bottom of the world’s deepest ocean. I can’t wait.