China's first deep-sea multi-functional scientific research and archaeological vessel docks in S China

China's first multi-functional scientific research and archaeological vessel for deep-sea exploration and excavation of cultural relics officially docked in Nansha District of Guangzhou City, south China's Guangdong Province on Saturday.

Measuring 104 meters long and displaced by about 10,000 tonnes, the multi-functional vessel was independently designed, developed, and built by China. It is capable of conducting deep-sea scientific investigations and cultural relic excavations, as well as scientific research in polar sea areas in summer, with bidirectional ice-breaking capability.

It can accommodate 80 people, traveling at a maximum speed of 16 knots (about 30 kilometers per hour) for a range of 15,000 nautical miles.

Construction of the vessel started in June 2023, with a total investment of about 800 million yuan (about $112.7 million).

Breakthroughs have been made in the application of key technologies, including the overall design, intelligent control, low-temperature precise compensation, and integrated design of ice zone payload and heavy payload structures, said He Guangwei, deputy chief engineer at Guangzhou Shipyard International Company of China State Shipbuilding Corporation.

"Efforts have also been made to replace imported components with domestically produced ones in the development of scientific research equipment and expanding functions so as to actively explore the application of domestically produced equipment in the polar regions," said He.

The ship will undergo equipment and system debugging, outfitting of living areas and sea trials before its scheduled delivery at the beginning of 2025.

It is expected to become an open and shared maritime platform for multi-system integration, multidisciplinary intersection and collaborative innovation in China, symbolizing significant progress in the country's autonomous control of deep-sea scientific research equipment and ship design for operation in polar regions.

It will also enhance China's manned deep-sea diving capabilities in all sea areas and improve the deep-sea archaeological capabilities.