Deep Sea Exploration Under the Samudrayaan Project

General Studies Paper-3

Context

• Recently, two Indian ‘aquanauts’ travelled deep into the Atlantic Ocean as part of preparations for the upcoming Samudrayaan Project, under which India aims to send three humans to depths of 6,000 metres by 2027.

About the Samudrayaan Project

• It is a flagship initiative under India’s Deep Ocean Mission, approved by the Cabinet in 2021 with a budget of ₹4,077 crore over five years. Key objectives include:
• Harness India’s 11,098 km-long coastline through a blue economy strategy.
• Explore untapped deep-sea minerals, fuels, and biodiversity resources.
• Protect and secure undersea telecommunication cables, vital for global connectivity.
• Place India among an elite group of nations — including the US, Russia, China, Japan, and France — with deep-sea human exploration capability.
• It operates as part of the Deep Ocean Mission under the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT).
• India is set to join an elite group of nations capable of manned deep-sea exploration, alongside the United States, Russia, China, Japan, and France with the launch of the Samudrayaan Project.

Matsya-6000: India’s Deep-Sea Submersible

• India’s aquanauts aim to travel in the Matsya-6000, a made-in-India titanium submersible, and designed like a large fish, developed by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT).
• Capacity: 3 humans for 12 hours, emergency endurance up to 96 hours.
• Initial Tests: Steel sphere dives up to 500 metres (wet test off Chennai, February).

Key Challenges

• Vessel Development: Precise thickness of titanium alloy sphere is required, and even 0.2 mm deviation in thickness risks collapse.
  • Fabrication involves electron beam welding, with ISRO assisting in the process.
• Life Support Systems: Oxygen regulation and carbon dioxide scrubbing are critical.
  • Equipped with re-breather oxygen systems for emergencies, recycling exhaled air.
• Aquanaut Health: High physical fitness is essential, and limited food and water intake.
• Communication: Radio waves fail underwater, requiring acoustic telephones.
  • India developed its own system, though initial tests struggled with temperature and salinity effects. Later trials in the open ocean confirmed functionality.

Looking Ahead

• The Samudrayaan Project represents a leap forward for India’s blue economy ambitions and scientific innovation.
• India could soon stand alongside global leaders in deep-sea human exploration, unlocking vast resources while strengthening strategic and technological self-reliance with the successful deployment of Matsya-6000.