DSV Alvin has carried scientists to the deepest parts of the ocean since 1964.
The U.S. research submersible Alvin was commissioned in 1964 and became one of the most important scientific vehicles in oceanography. It can carry a pilot and two researchers, allowing people to observe deep-sea ecosystems directly and collect samples with manipulator arms. The vehicle’s design has been repeatedly upgraded, including improvements to its pressure sphere, cameras, navigation, and depth capability.
Alvin helped scientists investigate hydrothermal vents, deep-sea geology, and the wreck of RMS Titanic. Its work at hydrothermal vents contributed to the discovery of ecosystems that depend on chemosynthesis rather than sunlight. The vehicle is operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution for the U.S. National Deep Submergence Laboratory.
Alvin is a human-occupied submersible, not an autonomous underwater vehicle. It is also distinct from the bathyscaphe Trieste, which carried people to Challenger Deep in 1960.