Mission Samudrayaan: India inches closer to sending humans into ocean's darkest depths, key details inside
Samudrayaan project
, a human mission to explore the ocean floor, by successfully welding the crew pod of the deep-sea vehicle,
Matsya-6000
.
What is Samudrayaan?
Samudrayaan is India's first manned deep ocean mission, run by the Ministry of Earth Sciences. The goal? To send three people up to 6 kilometres below sea level using a special vehicle that can handle extreme underwater conditions, crushing pressure, cold temperatures, and total darkness.
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This mission is part of India's broader Deep Ocean Mission, which focuses on exploring underwater resources, understanding marine biodiversity, and developing deep-sea technology.
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At the heart of the mission is the Human Occupied Vehicle (HOV), designed to keep the crew safe under intense pressure. The most important part of this HOV is a titanium sphere, 2.26 metres wide, with walls 80 mm thick, built to survive pressures of 600 bar and temperatures as low as -3°C.
On Wednesday, ISRO (India's space agency) announced that it had successfully welded this titanium pod using Electron Beam Welding (EBW), a first of its kind in India. This welding process was extremely difficult because it needed to join thick titanium parts together with high precision.
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Why This Is a Big Deal
Welding thick titanium isn't easy. The team had to upgrade their tools, increasing their welding machine's power from 15kW to 40kW, and even build better testing equipment. They carried out nearly 700 test welds, even inserting fake defects to test their safety checks.
Finally, they completed a 32-minute-long weld on the actual sub, 80 mm thick over 7.1 metres. It was a continuous process that required pinpoint accuracy. ISRO called it a 'national first in scale and precision.'
Now that the weld is done, Matsya-6000 is one step closer to underwater trials. Once ready, it will join an elite group of human submersibles worldwide that can go 6 km deep. This will help India explore new sea life, underwater minerals, and develop cutting-edge tech.
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