DEEP
OCEAN MISSION – SCI & TECH
News: Inside India’s ‘Deep Ocean Mission’,
a challenge harder than going to space
What's
in the news?
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The Deep Ocean Mission (DOM) is India’s
ambitious quest to explore and harness the depths of the ocean.
Key
takeaways:
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As part of this initiative, India will,
for the first time, embark on a journey to a depth of 6,000 metres in the ocean
using an indigenously developed submersible with a three-member crew.
●
The mission will require technologies to
access and transport tonnes of valuable minerals from the ocean-bed in an
environmentally safe manner.
MISSION
SAMUDRAYAAN - India’s 1st Manned Ocean Mission:
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The project proposes to send a submersible
vehicle with 3 persons to a depth of about 6000m to carry out deep underwater
studies.
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It is a pilot project of the Ministry of Earth Sciences for deep ocean
mining for rare minerals.
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The project is undertaken by the National
Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), and is in line with ISRO's ambitious
'Gaganyaan' mission.
Deep
Ocean Mission:
●
Deep Ocean Mission aims to explore the
deep ocean for resources.
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It also aims to develop deep-sea
technologies for sustainable use of
ocean resources.
Nodal
Ministry: Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).
Duration:
2021-25 (5 years)
Components
of the Mission:
The Deep Ocean Mission
consists of the following six major components such as
1.
Development of Technologies for Deep Sea Mining and Manned Submersible:
●
A manned submersible will be developed to
carry three people to a depth of 6000 metres in the ocean with a suite of
scientific sensors and tools.
●
For mining Polymetallic Nodules from 6000
m depth in the central Indian Ocean, an Integrated
Mining System will also be developed.
2.
Development of Ocean Climate Change Advisory Services:
●
Models will be developed to understand and
provide future projections of important climate variables on seasonal to
decadal time scales.
3.
Technological innovations for exploration and conservation of deep-sea
biodiversity:
●
Bio-prospecting
of deep-sea flora and fauna including microbes and studies on sustainable
utilization of deep-sea bio-resources will be the main focus under this
component.
●
Bio-prospecting is defined as a systematic
and organized search for useful products derived from bio-resources. It
includes plants, microorganisms, animals that can be developed further for
commercialization and overall benefits of the society.
4.
Deep Ocean Survey and Exploration:
●
This component will explore and identify
potential sites of multi-metal
Hydrothermal Sulphides mineralization along the Indian Ocean mid-oceanic
ridges.
5.
Energy and freshwater from the Ocean:
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Studies and detailed engineering design
for offshore Ocean Thermal Energy
Conversion (OTEC) powered desalination plants are being planned under this
component.
●
OTEC is a processor technology for
producing energy by harnessing the temperature differences (thermal gradients)
between ocean surface waters and deep ocean waters.
6.
Advanced Marine Station for Ocean Biology:
●
This component is aimed at the development
of human capacity and enterprise in ocean biology and engineering. It will
translate research into the industrial application and product development
through on-site business incubator
facilities.
Significance
of the mission:
●
Deep Ocean Mission will be a mission mode
project to support the Blue Economy
Initiatives of the Government of India.
●
The technology and expertise needed in
such missions are now available in only five countries – US, Russia, France,
Japan and China. India will be the sixth
country to have it.
Significance
of the Mission for Indian economy:
1.
Capabilities development:
●
The ‘Deep Ocean Mission’ plan will enable
India to develop capabilities to exploit resources in the Indian Ocean Basin.
IOB reserves contain deposits of metals like iron, manganese, nickel and
cobalt.
2.
Minerals:
●
Indian Ocean contain vast amount of
minerals, including the cobalt, zinc, manganese and rare earth materials.
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These minerals are needed for electronic industry to make smart
phones, laptops and car components etc. This can help Make in India initiative.
3.
Energy resources:
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The main energy resources present in
Indian Ocean are petroleum and gas hydrates. Petroleum products mainly includes
the oil produced from offshore regions.
●
Gas
hydrates are unusually compact chemical structures made of
water and natural gas.
●
Deep ocean mission along with these
resources would help in exploiting tidal energy and resources.
4.
Manganese Nodules and Crusts:
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Manganese nodules contain significant
concentrations of manganese, iron and
copper, nickel, and cobalt all of which have numerous economic uses.
5.
Sustainable development:
●
Marine
resources from the Indian Ocean would serve as the backbone of
India’s economic growth and can help India to become a 5trillion dollar economy
by 2022.
●
Blue
economy, through sustainable use of oceans, has great
potential for boosting the economic growth.
6.
Employment generation:
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It will provide jobs, improved livelihoods
to many. This will help in inclusive
growth.
7.
Climate Change:
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It will help in study Impact of climate
change on ocean. This would help India to prepare for any disaster due to
climate change.
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Also, Oceans provide an alternate and more cleaner source of
energy. It also acts as an important carbon sink. This will help in
mitigating climate change.
8.
Disaster preparedness:
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Information from deep-ocean exploration
can help predict earthquakes and tsunamis.
9.
Nation’s security:
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It will play a significant role in the security
of the nation as many critical military technologies rely heavily on rare earth
elements which are abundant in Ocean.
10.
Technological advancements:
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It can also help us in innovating
technologies from underwater vehicles to underwater robotics.
11.
Health industry:
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Unlocking the mysteries of deep-sea
ecosystems can reveal new sources for medical
drugs, food, and other products.
Sustainable Development
Goal (SDG 14), calls to conserve and
sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable
development. Thus deep ocean mission is a right step in this direction.