You Can Now Ride a Submarine To the Deepest Point On Earth (bloomberg.com) 44
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg: For some, the ultimate adventure is up in the stars. (See: Musk, Branson, Bezos.) For Texas businessman Victor Vescovo, the trip of a lifetime is a dive to the deepest known point on our own planet, the bottom of the Marianas Trench. For $750,000 per person, Vescovo will take guests down 35,843 feet in Limiting Factor, his $37 million Triton 36,000/2 submarine, whose depth capacity is more than 100 times that of the typical superyacht submersible. "Nobody gets more remote than this," says Rob McCallum, founding partner ofEYOS Expeditions, which is helping to plan and manage the trips to Challenger Deep, as this location is called. Almost seven miles beneath the water's surface, it has seen fewer human visitors than the International Space Station.
Just getting to the right patch of the Pacific requires an intrepid spirit. Guests sail roughly 200 miles southwest from Guam on Pressure Drop, a 224-foot-long research vessel, bunked in with scientists, a film crew, and technical experts. Basic comforts include a chef, mess hall, and a rooftop bar for "strategic thinking exercises and international alcohol evaluations," as McCallum puts it. Once there, they pair up with pilots to make roughly 12-hour dives -- four hours down, three to four hours at the bottom, and four hours up -- to a place so deep that its exterior pressure would feel like having five jumbo jets parked on your chest. The eight-day itinerary, which includes three dives and three rest days (during which the submarine's oxygen system is refilled and ballasts reloaded), remains thus far scheduled for two slots in May. The first has already sold out.
Just getting to the right patch of the Pacific requires an intrepid spirit. Guests sail roughly 200 miles southwest from Guam on Pressure Drop, a 224-foot-long research vessel, bunked in with scientists, a film crew, and technical experts. Basic comforts include a chef, mess hall, and a rooftop bar for "strategic thinking exercises and international alcohol evaluations," as McCallum puts it. Once there, they pair up with pilots to make roughly 12-hour dives -- four hours down, three to four hours at the bottom, and four hours up -- to a place so deep that its exterior pressure would feel like having five jumbo jets parked on your chest. The eight-day itinerary, which includes three dives and three rest days (during which the submarine's oxygen system is refilled and ballasts reloaded), remains thus far scheduled for two slots in May. The first has already sold out.
Fix: "The 1% can now ride..." (Score:5, Insightful)
Really, thinking something that expensive is somehow now 'possible' for the general population is just silly.
Re:Fix:Fixx (Score:1)
Talking about stealing the show
No one would know
Talking about stealing the show
When they're all letting go
And then I see the edge, I look I fall
And I get deeper and deeper
The more I see the more I fall
No place to hide, you better take the call
I get deeper and deeper
Depends on one's perspective...
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$750,000 per person is probably out of reach for most of us. If a one-way trip is only half price, then my wife and I can sell our house and go.
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if someone said "you can save up $750k in the next 20 years" would you also say that? admittedly it's impossible for some, but it's certainly possible for many, probably most.
Re:Fix: "The 1% can now ride..." (Score:5, Interesting)
A quick Google says median U.S. income is $40k (Household income is about 50% higher). After taxes and deductions, that's in the neighborhood of $32k
In 20 years, assuming zero expenses of any kind, you could save $460k.
So no, it's not remotely possible for most.
Who is it realistically possible for? Assuming you saved half your take-home pay for 20 years for the dream... that'd need to be $37.5k Which means you'd need to actually make roughly $100k before taxes. That's right around the boundary for entering the top 25%.
But saving 50% of your income for 20 years for a week-long joyride? That would have to be one heck of a compelling dream. Knock it down to 10% and you'd have to make ~$500k/year, which puts you firmly in the 1%
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Would you occasionally spend a week's worth of income on a novel week-long vacation?
I suspect the target market is primarily those for whom this is no greater expense. And they don't need your investment advice.
Target market (Score:2)
Who is it realistically possible for?
In the US alone, there's something like 14 million millionaires. Most of those are on the low end, but millions aren't.
Considering this is a trip on a tiny sub and not a cruise ship, it's probably the correct scale for the market size.
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Yeah but in twenty years it'll only cost $100k to take that same trip so you can take your whole family!
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yeah that's the weak point. but, i still think an equivalent feat would be possible.
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You can buy a snorkel and flippers for less than $100. And you will see way more fish etc. in the first 10m than in the bottom 1000m.
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if someone said "you can save up $750k in the next 20 years" would you also say that? admittedly it's impossible for some, but it's certainly possible for many, probably most.
To most? No man, these numbers don't add up. Counting the number of millionaires in this country with enough disposable income to create the willingness to spend that much on a single trip, this is truly out of reach to 99% of the population.
Nothing wrong with that, and if you, the generic you, have the financial means to do this (if you enjoy it), go for it.
But let us not pretend that this is within reach to most, as you suggested.
Additionally, people (millionaires included) don't just blow money ou
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"I'd rather have the 3/4 million dollars used for something vaguely useful, or just paying down some countries debt."
I agree.
We've been moving wealth upwards from lower percentiles towards higher percentiles.
"the Congressional Budget Office finds that the fifth of the population with the highest income saw their share rise from 46 to 55 percent between 1979 and 2014 (figure 1)"
https://www.taxpolicycenter.or... [taxpolicycenter.org]
Disparity, economic and democratic, has risen as more wealth has moved out of the average citizens'
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Actually you can ride for free... you just have to be willing to watch Titanic, on loop, for the duration of the trip down and back.
Re:Fix: "The 1% can now ride..." (Score:5, Funny)
Really, thinking something that expensive is somehow now 'possible' for the general population is just silly.
The even more limiting factor for most of slashdot is the 220lb weight limit. (that's 100 kilograms for those from countries with unit-conversion-challenged educational systems)
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The even more limiting factor for most of slashdot is the 220lb weight limit.
I resemble that remark!
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Really, thinking something that expensive is somehow now 'possible' for the general population is just silly.
Hey, youse wanna see the deepest part of the ocean? Me and Louie here can arrange dat for yer, just putcher feet in this here bucket and wait for Louie to pour the ciment...
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Reaching the bottom of the ocean just went from "you have to build your own experimental submarine, and hope you don't make any mistakes" to "you can order a standard sub from Triton, or rent one for a week".
Moaning that it's still expensive misses the point by several miles.
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You missed my point by light years.
I did not complain about the article. I complained about the Headline. It's a great article, very interesting. The Headline sucked, which is why I 'fixed' it, rather than the article. To be honest, I have the cash - though I am not willing to spend it on that.
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The way that technological progress works is first it's only possible for large entities like governments, than for the elite, then for the masses.
Just look at flight for instance.
The news here is that some private citizens are doing it, which means -- over some time, maybe decades -- such technology will be readily available to all
If you get stuck (Score:4, Funny)
can you call AAA?
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Certainly. They'll just laugh at you - but the story will probably make that poor call-center drone's day.
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No, but that's the last sound you'll make.
BBC Blue Planet II in 4K HD (Score:5, Insightful)
...or you can just buy the BBC's Blue Planet II documentary series in 4K HD. Episode 2, "The Deep" features a dive to the bottom of Challenger Deep & some impressive cinematography. Visitors going down there for 3-4 hours are unlikely to anything near to what the documentary film crew have already captured for all the world to see. Plus there's the flights & layovers to get to Guam, the 320+km boat trip to Challenger Deep, & the 8 hours' descent & ascent in the inky black expanse of the pacific ocean, where you're unlikely to see anything other than inky-blackness.
Price to own the Blu-ray of both Blue Planet & Planet Earth II for all eternity: ~$20 in the USA. If you're in the UK, you can watch them for free. Here's episode 2, "The Deep": https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/... [bbc.co.uk]
I remember seeing the 1999 solar eclipse in Stuttgart, Germany. It was cool being around 10,000's of people while the sky went dark for a few minutes (That was by far the best thing about it - People's reactions en masse) but the actual solar eclipse was not at all impressive to watch in person. The telescope recordings of eclipses are far more impressive & interesting to watch. I reckon going to the bottom of the Pacific isn't a dissimilarly unimpressive experience.
Let's not kid ourselves. This is about being able to say, "I can spend $750,000 per person & several days of my life on this & have little or nothing to show for it." Hopefully, they at least get a little badge & certificate of achievement signed by the CEO out of it to show their friends.
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Whereas going to space and experiencing liftoff and re-entry and 0-g would be much more of a full-body experience.
Re:BBC Blue Planet II in 4K HD (Score:4, Insightful)
"I can spend $750,000 per person & several days of my life on this & have little or nothing to show for it."
Hardly. A lot of personal achievements have "nothing to show for it". It's about saying "I've done it". Nothing more. It's expensive, but a check mark for some people none the less.
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That's interesting. I went to see t
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Blue Planet II "The Deep" wasn't filmed at Challenger Deep, it was filmed only about 1000 metres down in Antarctica. Challenger Deep is around 10x deeper than that at just short of 11,000 metres.
I appreciate what you're saying, it's misleading to suggest this is open to anyone other than the 1%, that's absolutely true, but personally as a diver, I think even Blue Planet II is no substitute for doing it and being in the ocean. Whilst I loved Blue Planet II the biggest disappointment for me was it largely tol
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That's incorrect, Blue Planet II episode 'The Deep' does include film from the Marianas Trench [wikipedia.org].
COVID-19 update (Score:5, Funny)
On their website, Vescovo states that customer health and safety is their top priority, and they have taken positive steps to ensure those goals:
Submersibles will now be stocked with complimentary hand sanitizers.
Submersible pilots will thoroughly wipe and disinfect each vessel between dives.
All passengers will be thermally checked for fevers before boarding the submersibles.
Although for technical reasons the pressure-resistant design of the submersibles does not accomodate a full 6-foot distance between occupants, all passengers and pilots are encouraged to keep their heads and faces as close to their own side of the hull as possible.
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...good thing I was already on the toilet!
Capital idea! (Score:1)
And ... (Score:5, Funny)
For $750,000 per person, Vescovo will take guests down 35,843 feet in Limiting Factor, his $37 million Triton 36,000/2 submarine, ...
The price to bring you back up will be negotiated while at the bottom.
Lowest point on Earth? (Score:1)
Why would I want to go to Mar-a-Lago?
Scary, but likely $$$$ (Score:3)
Brutal! (Score:2)
Seems perfect for Dethklok.
https://www.adultswim.com/vide... [adultswim.com]
Video of a previous dive (Score:2)
James Cameron made the film Deep Sea Challenge [deepseachallenge.com] of his dive there, only the second manned visit to that area.
Not. In. A. Million. Years. (Score:1)
As dangerous as the old space shuttle was, I'd ride that in a heartbeat. But this seems more dangerous by a few octaves. There is nothing quite that interesting down there for me to want to go. Gimmie a chance to look down on the big blue marble and I'm there. But cold / wet / dark just doesn't hold a candle.