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The deepest parts of the ocean are the least explored places on our planet. Immense water pressure and a complete absence of sunlight make this environment nearly as unwelcoming as outer space. Yet locked in these dark depths could be clues that will help us better understand our world. Before James Cameron’s historic dive, only three other vehicles had made the descent to the Challenger Deep, the world’s deepest known point. In 1960 two men descended there in the bathyscaphe Trieste, a sub bigger than a bus. Once there, they spent only 20 minutes staring at a milky cloud of sediment before returning to the surface. In 1995, the Japanese-built Kaiko, an unmanned, robotic submersible, made several trips to nearly 7 miles (11 kilometers) below, picking up sediment and microorganisms along the way. Kaiko was lost at sea in 2003. In 2009, the Nereus, also an unmanned vehicle, made its inaugural trip to the Challenger Deep. Built by engineers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the Nereus could collect rocks, animals, and water samples and can transmit high-quality video to the surface through a hair-thin fiber-optic cable. In 2014 Nereus succumbed to the crushing pressures of hadal depths and imploded while exploring the Kermadec Trench. On March 26, 2013, the one-year anniversary of Cameron’s historic dive, his specially designed sub, the DEEPSEA CHALLENGER, was donated to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, where its groundbreaking technology is being applied to present-day deep ocean robotic vehicles. Cast: James Cameron, Suzy Amis, Frank Lotito, Paul Henri, Lachlan Woods. Directed: John Bruno, Ray Quint, Andrew Wight. Produced: Mikael Borglund, James Cameron, Brett Popplewell, Lisa Truitt, Andrew Wight, Maria Wilhelm. Screenplay: Andrew Wight, John Garvin. Edited: Jane Moran. Cinematography: Jules O’Loughlin, John Stokes, Ian ’Thistle’ Thorburn. Music: Brett Aplin, Amy Bastow, Ricky Edwards. Release: August 8, 2014 / United States. Production: National Geographic Entertainment, Disruptive LA, Earthship Productions, Wight Expedition Films, Beyond Productions. Distributed: GEM Entertainment, Beyond Films, Disruptive LA, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Lionsgate UK, Universal Pictures. Running Time: 01:31:05.
