Canadian company, Deep Trekker, joined a new mission to solve one of the most captivating mysteries of the ocean -- what lies at the bottom of the Great Blue Hole in Belize?
The Great Blue Hole is the largest sinkhole in the world -- a giant cavern measuring 300 meters (984 feet) across and around 125 meters deep.
In 1971, underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau put the Blue Hole on the map when he first explored its depths. Nearly half a century later, despite becoming a scuba hotspot, the Blue Hole's exact features remain mostly unknown. But Cousteau's grandson, Fabien Cousteau, is on the case.
Deep Trekker joined up with billionaire Richard Branson – who runs Ocean Unite, a leadership initiative that aims to protect the ocean, along with a team of scientists, explorers and filmmakers.
The group took Deep Trekker’s DTG2 ROV and DTX2 ROV along with Aquatica Sub’s manned Aquatica Stingray 500 to the bottom of the hole to chart what lies deep down below . Located roughly 40 miles off the Belize coast, the Blue Hole is thought to have once been a giant cave on dry land, thousands of years ago.
As the ocean rose again, the cave flooded. It's now part of the wider Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Blue Hole has never been fully mapped or plotted -- the idea is this new expedition might answer the question of what lies at the bottom of this enigmatic cavern.
Deep Trekker’s remotely operate vehicles and sidescan sonar acoustic imaging provided additional lighting and video coverage to allow both the onboard team and the viewer at home to see as much as possible.
All of Deep Trekker’s ROVs are equipped with an internal HD camera – 330 degree field of view for inspections below, above, behind or in front of you, all while seeing the live feed directly to your handheld controller. With on-board batteries, the company’s ROVs can work up to 8 hours – a portable, affordable and easy to use system.
Following the dive on December 2, vessels will continue to monitor and explore the site for two weeks, collecting data that will allow experts to construct real-life models of the Blue Hole's geography.
The Blue Hole Belize 2018 Expedition was broadcast live on the Discovery Channel on Sunday December 2, 2018.
Story by Deep Trekker
