Saturday 7th February 2026
Deep dive (#1,177)
U.S. Navy Bathyscaphe Trieste, by unknown author. (Public domain)
Questions about the history of deep-sea exploration using submersibles. For reference, the deepest point of the ocean is Challenger Deep, which has a depth of 10,935 metres, or just over 6¾ miles.
1. On August 15, 1934, William Beebe and Otis Barton descended to 3,028 feet (923 m). What was the name of their undersea craft?
2. On September 22 1932, Beebe and Barton made a dive during which they broadcast live on the radio. What made this dive especially uncomfortable?
3. In the 1940s and 1950s, Auguste Piccard explored to greater depths in a bathyscaphe (pictured above), which has a small crew compartment suspended below a large float tank. What is the float tank filled with?
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