The Challenger Deep and the Vast Ocean

Known as the deepest place on Earth, the Challenger Deep was reached by Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh on January 23, 1960. Jacques Piccard was a Swiss oceanographer and Don Wash was a US Navy Lieutenant. Piccard and Walsh used a deep-diving submarine which was called Trieste which was designed by Jacques Piccard's father Auguste Piccard. The inside of the vehicle(can be seen in the picture below) was very confined, making Piccard and Walsh stay very close to one another. The pressure of the deep sea at such depts was quite lethal and one tiny mistake meant certain death for Piccard and Walsh. The findings of this journey shocked a number of scientists who thought that there could be no life under such pressures and such cold temperatures. Nevertheless, when Piccard and Walsh looked at the quite dark ocean, they could see life. The journey took 4 hours and 47 minutes, Piccard and Walsh were the first humans who reached the deepest point in the ocean which was 10923 meters deep.

To see how fascinating and terrifying this expedition was, one can look at some intriguing pieces of information about the vast ocean. For example, about 6000 meters deep, there is the Hadal Zone which only three people have seen. Hadal Zone is an important zone because it represents the deepest marine habitat on Earth. There are also huge animals in the depths of the ocean that could be quite scary for people who have thalassophobia, in other words, the fear of the ocean. One of the huge animals that dwell in the deep sea is the Colossal Squid which can reach a length of 10 meters and weigh up to 700 kg. The vast ocean is not only a home for creatures who can create their own lights but also a home for many shipwrecks. The deepest shipwreck ever found in the vast ocean is the USS Johnston which sank during World War Two.