A remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV), carried by the Chinese scientific research vessel Exploration-2, has been tested with a maximum working depth of 4,308 meters in the South China Sea, the Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering (IDSSE) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences said on Thursday.

The remotely operated underwater vehicle, together with the Chinese scientific research vessel Exploration-2, completed a 4,308-meters sea trial in the South China Sea from November 7 to 19, 2022. (Photo: IDSSE)

The ROV worked normally and all indexes met the design goals, indicating that it has the capability to undertake deep-sea scientific research and engineering operations, said the IDSSE.

With the Exploration-2 as its mother ship, the self-developed ROV can provide a variety of general interfaces such as electric, communication and control interfaces, so to carry various operation tools and modules for scientific research.

A sea trial of a deep-sea in situ biological gene sequencer has also been carried out. The device, equipped with a repeater, was taken to a depth of 1,800 meters for biological samples' sequencing and analysis.

It laid a foundation for joint biological detection and analysis with other instruments in a deep-sea in situ environment, said the IDSSE.