The Institute - March 2022 - 61

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution's Alvin submersible being prepared for a dive.
TECH HISTORY
After 58 Years,
Alvin Still Explores
the Ocean Depths
The U.S. crewed submersible has
been honored with an IEEE Milestone
BY JOANNA GOODRICH
WATER PRESSURE in the deep sea
makes human exploration of the ocean
difficult. Special equipment such as
a scuba regulator is needed to help
humans withstand the pressure at even
the average depth of the ocean-which
is 380 times greater than at the surface,
according to the U.S. National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration.
Alvin, the first U.S. human-operated
vessel dedicated to scientific research,
made it possible for humans to dive
for up to nine hours at 4,500 meters.
The vessel was developed in 1964 by
a research team led by geophysicist
Allyn C. Vine at the Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), in
Falmouth, Mass.
Thanks to Alvin, scientists were
able to study the effects of pressure on
seafloor microbes, and they discovered
hydrothermal vents that help regulate
ocean chemistry and support ecosystems.
In addition to scientific research,
the submersible conducted several
expeditions for the U.S. Navy. During
its first major deployment in 1966,
the vessel was sent to search for a
hydrogen bomb that accidently was
dropped in the Mediterranean Sea
after a U.S. Air Force bomber and a
tanker collided over Spain. It took
Alvin two months to find it.
The submersible, which is still
used today, has been commemorated
with an IEEE Milestone. The IEEE
Providence (R.I.) Section sponsored
the nomination. Due to the COVID-19
pandemic, the dedication ceremony is
still being planned.
Administered by the IEEE History
Center and supported by donors,
the Milestone program recognizes
outstanding technical developments
around the world.
The necessary push
Although Alvin wasn't the first humanoperated
underwater vehicle, its
predecessors were larger and difficult
to maneuver. In a 2015 interview with
the WGBH Forum Network, Dudley
Foster, an engineer who worked
on Alvin, described the previous
submersibles as " blimps. "
During a 1956 symposium about
deep-sea exploration held in
MARCH 2022 THE INSTITUTE
61
WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION

http://ieeemilestones.ethw.org/Main_Page https://r1.ieee.org/providence/ https://r1.ieee.org/providence/ https://spectrum.ieee.org/tag/coronavirus?utm_source=spectrum-hero https://spectrum.ieee.org/tag/coronavirus?utm_source=spectrum-hero http://www.ieee.org/about/history_center/index.html http://www.ieee.org/about/history_center/index.html https://www.ieeefoundation.org/donate_history https://www.nae.edu/28420/Dr-Allyn-C-Vine https://www.whoi.edu/ https://www.whoi.edu/ https://www.whoi.edu/ https://www.whoi.edu/know-your-ocean/did-you-know/why-is-pressure-different-in-the-ocean/ http://www.scienceforthepublic.org/speakers-guests/meet-dudley-foster https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQstoM5LdYw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQstoM5LdYw https://www.forum-network.org/ http://www.scienceforthepublic.org/speakers-guests/meet-dudley-foster http://www.scienceforthepublic.org/speakers-guests/meet-dudley-foster http://www.scienceforthepublic.org/speakers-guests/meet-dudley-foster https://www.navy.com/

The Institute - March 2022

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