514 UIETZ [CHAP. 23 



at the normal maximum depth of the sea of 5500 m. The metallurgical problems 

 posed by using titanium are difficult. Fabrication of a hull with the light metal 

 beryllium would open up even the greatest depths of the seas to bathynauts. 

 Beryllium, however, is so expensive and its metallurgy so exotic (it is even 

 poisonous to man) that its use seems unlikely for some time to come. 



Nuclear power is, of course, the ultimate answer to the propulsion problem 

 as such power permits the construction of a submersible with unlimited under- 

 water cruising ability. The stay in the abyss would be limited only by the 

 stamina and human frailty of the crew. As yet, however, there is no deep craft 

 even in the planning stage that contemplates using this new power source. 



Deep-ocean diving seems, in a sense, a forbidding prospect under the crushing 

 pressures of 600 bars or more. Yet the rigors of the deep are small as compared 

 with those of outer space, and, with the backing of unlimited funds, giant 

 strides have already been taken in its invasion by man. The oceans are a mere 

 film covering two-thirds of the earth, many thousands of times as wide as they 

 are deep. Through their direct approach, adventurous scuba-diving scientists 

 have provided new insight concerning the shallow fringes. That oceanographers 

 will soon be invading the abyss in deep ships, there can be no doubt at all. 



Note Added in Proof 



Two years have elapsed since the submission of this manuscript (June 1960) 

 and the present time (June 1962). It is desirable therefore to bring some of the 

 developments mentioned up to date. 



The new French bathyscaph, christened Archimede, was launched in July, 

 1961, at the Toulon Naval Base. Since that date she has undergone tests in the 

 Mediterranean Sea and has been outfitted with scientific instrumentation. 

 In April, 1962, the Archimede was sent to Japan for a series of deep dives into 

 the fauna-rich Kurile Trench. Houot, Willm, De Lauze, Peres and Japanese 

 scientists will participate. A dive into the Vityaz Deep, 10,542 m and the third 

 deepest point in the world, will be made. According to a news report, the first 

 dive was completed off Onagawa, Japan, on May 22 to 4800 m. A 1963 diving 

 campaign is planned for the Puerto Rico Deep. 



The completion of the Aluminaut has been deferred beyond original expec- 

 tations so that its realization lies still in the indefinite future. Considerable 

 difficulty has been encountered in welding or glueing aluminum hull sections 

 together; also a small model failed under a pressure test, thus requiring con- 

 siderable designing. 



A plethora of new designs of a large variety of deep craft have been made, 

 particularly by various aircraft companies in the U.S.A., but as far as the writer 

 knows, no prototypes have been built. 



The RUM vehicle has continued to undergo tests and modifications close to 

 shore and in shallow water on an experimental rather than an operational basis. 

 The helicopter modification of a RUM-type vehicle has undergone design 

 studies by Hughes Aircraft Corp., but to the writer's knowledge no prototype 

 has been built. 



