Half ship, half submarine, the 58-meter-tall SeaOrbiter aims to simultaneously be a floating laboratory, a hangar for underwater vehicles, and a training base for aquanauts. Based in France, the project has a specific objective to “enable [researchers and explorers] to live underwater for long periods of time,” says oceanographer Ariel Fuchs, executive director of the project. The oceanic research and exploration vessel took more than 12 years to plan. Construction is scheduled to begin this spring and, including integration of the initial scientific and communications equipment, is expected to cost $52 million and take 12 to 18 months. The maiden voyage—from Nantes near the Atlantic coast of France to Monaco on the Mediterranean—is scheduled for the spring of 2016.
The project is sponsored by a mix of commercial and other nongovernmental partners from around the world and managed by experts from the ocean- and space-exploration communities. SeaOrbiter can accommodate up...
