Explorer Becomes the First to Reach Deepest Point in All 5 Oceans
By Yasemin Saplakoglu - Staff Writer 3 hours ago
On Aug. 24, explorer Victor Vescovo dove to the deepest part of the Arctic Ocean.(Image: © Five Deeps Expedition/Discovery Channel)
Hidden beneath the Fram Strait, a passage that separates Greenland and Svalbard, lies the deepest point in the Arctic Ocean, where the seafloor plunges some 18,209 feet (5,550 meters) down. And now, explorer Victor Vescovo has become the first person to ever reach it.
The diving feat also makes him the first person to dive to the deepest part of all the world's oceans.
On Aug. 24, Vescovo descended around to the bottom of the so-called Molloy Deep, a frigid trench that sits 170 miles (274 kilometers) west of Svalbard, Norway. To reach Molloy, Vescovo descended in a submersible called the DSV Limiting Factor 40 to 50 miles (64 to 80 km) out from the edge of an ice pack, according to a statement. After Vescovo's initial solo dive, the team dove twice more.
With these latest dives, Vescovo and his team completed the "Five Deeps Expedition," a mission to reach the bottom of all five of the world's oceans an achievement filmed for "Deep Planet," a documentary series that will air on the Discovery Channel later this year.
More:
https://www.livescience.com/explorer-dives-deepest-part-arctic-ocean.html