Deep Ocean Mission, Samudrayaan & Submersibles
The Deep Ocean Mission (DOM), approved by the Government of India as a flagship multi-institutional initiative under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), seeks to develop deep-sea technologies for sustainable ocean exploration. Central to this mission is Project Samudrayaan, spearheaded by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai. It involves the engineering of 'MATSYA 6000', an indigenous human-occupied submersible capable of transporting a crew of three to ocean depths of 6,000 metres under extreme atmospheric pressures. Primary mission objectives encompass surveying polymetallic nodules rich in nickel, cobalt, copper, and manganese in the Central Indian Ocean Basin, prospecting deep-sea polymetallic sulphides along hydrothermal vents, and researching novel marine bio-resources for biotechnology.
Key Concepts & Examination Highlights
- MATSYA 6000 is India's indigenous crewed submersible designed to carry 3 human personnel to a depth of 6,000 metres.
- The National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai, is the lead nodal agency developing the Samudrayaan submersible.
- India holds exploration rights for Polymetallic Nodules allocated by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in the Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB).
- The Deep Ocean Mission comprises six major thematic pillars including ocean climate change advisory services and deep-sea mining vehicles.