Upgraded Deep-Sea Submersible 'Alvin' Sets Sail

The upgraded submersible Alvin is loaded onto the R/V Atlantis on May 13, 2013. (Image credit: Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Alvin the submersible is going on a cross-country journey after a $41 million upgrade.

The scientific sub has a storied career in deep-ocean research. Its famous voyages include a trip to survey the wreckage of the Titanic in 1996 and to discover a lost hydrogen bomb in the Mediterranean Sea in 1966. It has explored the Deepwater Horizon oil spill area in the Gulf of Mexico as well as deep hydrothermal vents in the Pacific Ocean.

At that depth, Alvin will have access to 98 percent of the ocean, upgrade project leader Susan Humphris of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution told LiveScience in July.

The research vessel Atlantis left Woods Hole in Massachusetts on Saturday (May 25) with Alvin aboard. The Atlantis and its cargo will travel through the Panama Canal to reach Oregon on June 20.

The upgraded submersible Alvin features five viewing ports (three visible here) for up to three passengers. (Image credit: Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

"This is an important moment in the long process of building the sub and bringing it back online," Susan Avery, the president and director of Woods Hole, said in a statement. "Alvin is a cornerstone of U.S. deep-ocean research, enabling untold scientific discoveries and greater understanding of our ocean. We're eager to have it back in service."

After a series of test dives off Monterey, Calif., this September, Alvin will take a cruise in November to ensure its systems are functioning properly. It will then return to service in December.

Alvin's new 3-inch-thick (7.6 centimeters) titanium sphere can hold a pilot and two scientists. It has a slightly larger interior than the sub's previous quarters and five viewing ports for visibility. In the upgrade, Alvin also received upgraded lighting and an improved command and control system.

The R/V Atlantis also received an upgrade for its job as submersible carrier. The changes included a strengthened A-frame, the structure used to launch the sub and haul it back onboard, and a renovated hangar for Alvin's storage.

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Stephanie Pappas is a contributing writer for Live Science, covering topics ranging from geoscience to archaeology to the human brain and behavior. She was previously a senior writer for Live Science but is now a freelancer based in Denver, Colorado, and regularly contributes to Scientific American and The Monitor, the monthly magazine of the American Psychological Association. Stephanie received a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of South Carolina and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.