Everywhere you look all you see is darkness, the water temperature is a frigid 33 degrees Fahrenheit, and the water pressure pushing on you is over 1000 atm or over 1000 times more forceful than the pressure we feel from the atmosphere at sea level. This place is better known as Mariana Trench located almost 7 miles below the ocean surface, the deepest ocean location on the planet. Does that sound like a cozy safe place that you would want to spend your time? Fortunately there is no need to send people into this dangerous and unique location to discover it's mystical properties.
Meet Kaiko, the first robot to reach the deepest part of the ocean. Kaiko is a Japanese made ROV (Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicle) that was first sent to the bottom of Mariana Trench in March 1995. On its first journey Kaiko reached its deepest travel depth at 10,911.4 meters and took video and pictures of it's travel. On its second trip to the bottom of the ocean it actually collected sediment and microorganism samples that were then examined. These samples were extremely important because they gave scientists an idea of what sort of life and environment existed at this unique location. Below is a video of Kaiko at work.
The implications of what deep sea ROVs can provide for mankind are almost unlimited. First, they allow humans to travel into extremely dangerous locations without having to physically being there. This increases the safety factor for scientists performing the research. Second, they make discovering and mapping the earths entire surface an easier task. Third, and maybe most importantly, they help discover new organisms such as bacteria that could one day help humans with anything from curing medical diseases to advancing technology. ROVs are great examples of how the machines we have created were made to ultimately help us.
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