Why can't a diver go to Mariana trench? We're going to space, yet this part of ocean isn't explored
Thank you for sending in this great question! I am a big fan of the deep sea, so I’ll do my best to share some answers with you…
![Map showing the location of the Mariana Trench, designed as a replacement for en:Image:Mariana_trench_location.jpg.](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/culture-online/sites/culture_online/files/styles/large_image/public/case-study/marianatrenchmap.png?itok=4GQ73OVA)
23 August 2021
… First up, the Mariana Trench is deep. In fact, it’s very, very deep. It’s home to the deepest point on Earth – Challenger Deep.
Now, as well as that being quite scary, that also means that there is a big change in pressure when you go deeper and deeper into the ocean. If you think about flying in a plane or going to space – breathing becomes difficult if you don’t have a nice plane or rocket to sit in with some air for you to breathe comfortably. Whilst divers can carry oxygen tanks with them on dives, in the ocean, the pressure would become too much for a diver beyond a certain point.
There’s a great video on how deep humans can dive here:
(Tip: I’d skip to 1 minute 19, as that skips the adverts!
However, we can ‘dive’ this deep using robotic vehicles as our ‘underwater planes’, so scientists have explored the Mariana Trench. You can read more about some of the first explorers of these deep waters here:
http://www.joncopley.com/blog_jan20.html
Exploration of the Mariana Trench is ongoing and scientists learn new things about this region all the time, but my favourite things that have been found there so far have to be the weird and wonderful animals living at deep-sea hydrothermal vents, so I hope you don’t mind me sharing a video narrated by Dr Diva Amon, National Geographic Emerging Explorer and scientist, showing you the vents:
and then some cool creatures:
I also recommend checking out the information I posted in the following link, as it might be of interest to you: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/culture-online/ask-expert/your-questions-answered/how-much-pressure-builds-deepest-point-ocean. I talk about the Mariana Trench and how we measure pressure, as well as sharing a video I love about just how deep the ocean is.
Thanks again for sending your question! I hope you have a good day and enjoy learning more about the deep sea!