The "Exploration - 3" is China's first deep - sea multi - functional scientific research and cultural relics archaeology vessel with completely independent intellectual property rights2. It has multiple capabilities, including deep - sea diving, ice - breaking, archaeology, and marine engineering, and is the first platform to support manned missions in the global polar regions and deep - sea areas1. With a length of about 104 meters, a displacement of about 10,000 tons, a maximum speed of 16 knots, a PC4 - level ice - strengthening, a cruising range of 15,000 nautical miles, and a crew of 80, the vessel has broken the long - term foreign technical monopoly by achieving the independent control of a number of key technologies, such as the overall design technology of ice - class ships and intelligent control technology. It is equipped with domestic scientific research equipment suitable for ice - area operations and has established a ship - shore collaborative intelligent ship management platform.
The "Exploration - 3" will undertake tasks such as deep - sea resource investigation, ecological research, and technical verification. It will provide operational support for domestic manned and unmanned submersibles, such as the "Deep - Sea Warrior" and the "Striver", which is of great significance for promoting China's deep - sea scientific research and manned deep - diving operations. In the first half of 2025, the vessel will carry the "Deep - Sea Warrior" manned submersible to carry out routine scientific research operations, deep - sea equipment sea trials, and deep - sea archaeology in the South China Sea, and will enter the deep - sea ocean for manned deep - diving operations in the second half of the year.
The commissioning of the "Exploration - 3" marks that China's manned deep - diving capability has been expanded from the full - sea - depth to the entire sea area. It has significantly enhanced China's independent capability of deep - sea scientific and technological equipment and has been selected as one of the scientific and technological "stars" in Xinhua News Agency's 2024 year - end inventory, shining brightly in China's scientific and technological field.
