The first expedition dive of the Mir 1 deep sea submersible to the bottom of Lake Baikal was devoted to finding and recovering a scientific probe left during last years expedition. The probe was found at a depth of 1323 meters, it was in excellent condition, and scientists hope its data on temperature, salinity, water clarity, and oxygen content were preserved. During the dive, soil and water samples were also taken, and the Mir submersibles will work alternately for more efficient scientific data collection.
The main goal of the first expedition dive of the deep-sea manned submersible Mir-1 to the bottom of Lake Baikal was to locate and retrieve a scientific probe left underwater during last year’s expedition, one of the expedition participants said.The scientific CTD probe, belonging to the Limnological Institute, is designed for continuous measurement of water temperature, salinity and transparency, as well as dissolved oxygen content. Such measurements are the basis for assessing the ecosystem of water bodies.
The probe was found at a depth of 1,323 meters and brought up onto a barge. Despite the fact that the probe spent almost a year underwater, it is in excellent condition, so the scientists hope that the data for science has also been preserved.
The submersible dive took place off the capes of Chaykin Cliff, Aslamov, Uber and Marituy, five kilometers from the shore. In addition, soil and water samples were taken during the dive.
It was previously reported that starting June 17, the Mir submersibles will dive into the lake alternately to improve the efficiency of collecting scientific information.