Defining a Sub-Category for Ocean Exploration

For centuries, civilizations have attempted to engineer vehicles to transport people below the waterline in the name of subsea exploration. For the most part, however, Deep Submergence Vehicles (DSVs) remained the purview of science fiction protagonists until twentieth-century advances in mechanical propulsion and sonar extended their reach and navigational capacity, most notably for defense applications.

From there, the modern-day submersible became an operational reality and opened a viable gateway to our most enterprising subaquatic ambitions. To this day, even amid a growing appetite for crewless, machine-automated operations at sea, there is an insatiable fascination with manned expeditions to previously unfathomable depths.

BREAKING RECORDS

The Five Deeps Expedition (FDE) illustrates just how far we, as ocean explorers, have come in recent years. The 2018/19 record-breaking campaign to dive to the deepest reaches of Earth’s five oceans—namely the Puerto Rico Trench in the Atlantic Ocean, South Sandwich Trench in the South Atlantic Ocean, Java Trench in the Indian Ocean, Challenger Deep in the Pacific, and Molloy Deep in the Arctic Ocean—is a tale of unprecedented industry collaboration between key strategic partners, all funded by a private businessman turned explorer, Victor Vescovo.

Triton were selected to deliver and deploy the Hadal Exploration System—which included the refitting of the 224ft research vessel DSSV Pressure Drop and the design and fabrication of three landers, a custom LARS, and Triton’s headline-grabbing 36000/2 Full-Ocean-Depth (FOD) manned submersible.

The Limiting Factor, as the sub came to be known, was built around a titanium alloy pressure hull—weld-free and capable of withstanding 1,127 bar. Syntactic foam was used to ensure that the sub was heavy enough to dive but also sufficiently buoyant to roam the seafloor at FOD. Three ultra-wide angle 20cm-thick viewports, made from specialized acrylic, afford the pilot an extraordinary front-row view of the bottom of the world. Among the expedition’s long list of world-firsts, one of the more celebrated was the deepest manned dive in history, to 10,925 meters at Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench—that’s 6.8 miles straight down.

SCIENCE IN ACTION

With high-profile feats of this nature, the headlines write themselves—Touchdown: Mission Accomplished—but it is what was observed, and the volume of data collected during the FDE that brings the scientific applicability of manned submersibles into sharp focus.

From December 2018 to August 2019, clocking up over 47,000 nautical miles, the expedition mapped over 450,000 square kilometers of previously unmapped seafloor using a Kongsberg EM 124 sonar (bathymetric imaging since made available to the Seabed 2030 project); captured over 500 hours of mesmerizing HD subsea footage; gathered 400,000 biological samples and 1.5 million meters of water data, including water from every deep; and significantly accelerated the understanding of Hadal Zone habitats and the roles its inhabitants—including up to 40 newly identified species—have on oceanic ecosystems. In short, while FDE might be more immediately associated with breaking records, the crew’s nine months at sea will be celebrated for creating (scientific) records that contribute to ocean science for years to come. The Limiting Factor remains the only human-occupied commercially certified FOD sub available for repeated dives to the deepest, darkest, and most curious chasms of the planet.

SAFETY FIRST

But whether designing a sub for deep-sea adventurers, filmmakers, or superyacht owners, safety is always the first consideration at Triton Submarines. The ocean is no place for compromise or complacency, so an overreliance on existing standards and design principles will only get you so far. Every aspect of a Triton build is subject to rigorous testing and certification, from conception through to sea trials. Each sub is equipped with manual overrides on all critical systems and comes with 96 hours life support/emergency battery power as standard. Without exception, stress-testing—under pressures of at least 1.2 times the vehicle’s operating depth—is overseen and validated by an independent ABS (American Bureau of Shipping) or DNV surveyor. Remove this detailed third-party classification and we are essentially prototyping, and that is not our game. When working with new software, cutting-edge materials, and pioneering marine electrical engineering, industry accreditation is critical.

This independent certification also goes some way to debunking the myth (one almost certainly propagated by Hollywood’s penchant for disaster movies) that subs are dark, claustrophobic, and inherently dangerous. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, statistically, civilian subs represent the safest form of transportation today; in more than three decades, ABS and DNV classed submersibles have retained a perfect safety record.

DESIGNING EXPERIENCES

Although a sub is a highly engineered, complex system of failproof systems, from an end-user perspective, Triton’s design philosophy centers around the simplicity of operation, ease of maintenance, and reliability of performance. The singular objective is to deliver unforgettable, immersive underwater experiences. A key component of this is the appointment of our signature transparent pressure hulls, which frame our surprisingly roomy cabins, while our single lift point on most models simplifies deck handling. All orders come with full technical support and operational training to cover piloting, surface coordination, communications, launch and recovery, and routine and corrective maintenance. Triton’s instructors are the most experienced in the business.

As passengers dip below the surface, the great unknown casts its spell. Surface references fade, depth perception takes on a new realm, and time stands still. The parallels with space travel are tempting, but then you see it: life. Plankton, fish, and reefs unexplored, as bottom features come into plain view. With the gentle manipulation of an easy-to-use joystick, the pilot settles into the director’s chair of a very private nature documentary.

Words seldom capture this flood of emotion. Indeed, many of our private customers don’t realize how much they need a sub until they experience one for the first time. Today, naval architects and yacht designers are looking to enhance the ownership experience, and for many that means exclusive access to the waters below. This attitude would have been unthinkable twenty years ago, but early adopters are changing the perception of subs and the experiences they now offer. I often joke, we don’t create submarines at Triton; we create ocean explorers.

FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES

The personal submersible market has developed significantly since we set up shop in Florida in 2008. The team has grown from a handful of employees to a 40-strong staff of leading subsea engineering experts—with more than 400 years collective experience, this is the most qualified group of submersible designers, engineers, and operators on the planet.

Our first model was the Triton 1000/2, before launching the now industry-benchmark Triton 3300/3 two years later. Responding to demand for units with a lower profile, in 2016 we unveiled our Triton 1650/3, the smallest, lightest three-person superyacht submersible available, which attracted Aston Martin and resulted in our partnership to develop a design intended to redefine subsea luxury; the limited edition Project Neptune submersible.

This spirit of cooperation will prove instrumental to the democratization of first-hand knowledge and experience of undersea environments. Obviously, not everyone is in a position to purchase a private sub, but working with the travel, leisure and tourism trade is one way of ensuring that more people can appreciate submarine life.

Our patent protected Triton 660/9 AVA (Advanced Versatile Acrylics) is designed for this very purpose. Undersea wedding? As long as the guest list is kept to nine people, set the date. Decisive boardroom meeting? Ensure there are no (terrestrial) interruptions, at 200 meters below. Not only does the elliptical cabin—the world’s first non-spherical acrylic pressure hull—offer a more versatile footprint but it also minimalizes AVA’s displacement, which in turn limits crane weight. Component technology and advances in materials are allowing us to engineer things that once would have been considered fantastical.

OCEAN ENGAGEMENT

These twentieth-first-century breakthroughs in ocean science and technology are helping spread a wave of engagement not seen since Cousteau. Just look at OceanX, Ray Dalio’s extraordinary investment in creating a global community of explorers, scientists and storytellers dedicated to inspiring future generations to protect the oceans, or the work REV Ocean is doing to promote “One Healthy Ocean.” Projects like these recognize just how restricted our current knowledge of the oceans is and are committed to educating wider society about the vast breadth of discoveries that lie in wait. Their legacy will be one of powerful storytelling and lessons in how to harness partnerships to bring about meaningful change. The fact that both organizations use Triton subs to carry out their deep-sea dives is a point of enormous pride for the Triton family.

Beyond defying the odds, The Five Deeps Expedition also inspired our design team to envision a new breed of DSV for historical research. Following our 2019 dives to the wreck site of the RMS Titanic—12,500 ft down in the pitch dark, freezing waters off Newfoundland—we finalized the specifications for the Triton 13000/2, aptly dubbed the “Titanic Explorer.” The sub features our versatile “Gull Wing” arrangement, designed to optimize pilot maneuverability and control, as well as the world’s deepest diving acrylic hull—450 mm thick—for unparalleled viewing.

The recent leaps in submersible technology have amply demonstrated what is possible. It is now a question of resources and commercial viability. Today, when it comes to ocean exploration, Triton customers can commission their own legacy.

Triton Submarines is headquartered in Sebastian, Florida and supported by a second R&D, production and service facility in Barcelona, Spain.

This story was featured in ON&T August 2021. Click here to read more.