SeaOrbiter - Dream ocean research station

When it comes to the SeaOrbiter project 2 years ago, many people thought this was a crazy idea. An explorer model combined with an oceanic research station that only appeared in sci-fi films. However, French architect Jacques Rougerie, the head of the SeaOrbiter project, has just confirmed the project will be started later this year and completed in 2013.

SeaOrbiter has a very special design, it looks more like a space station than a ship running on the sea. With a special vertical design, SeaOrbiter is as tall as 51m, while only 10.35m long and 16.12m wide. And with this design, more than half of the ship will be submerged to ensure the ship will operate stably, so only 20 meters above the ship is floating on the water.

The ship consists of 8 main floors, of which 3 are above the water surface and 5 are submerged below. 3 floors above with spacious deck can serve tourism, entertainment activities or simply let researchers breathe fresh air. The lower 5 floors are the study area, collecting data from the ocean and analyzing. In particular, the bottom floor is made entirely of glass capable of withstanding great pressure, used in ocean floor observation activities.

In addition to using artificial energy sources, SeaOrbiter also uses natural energy sources such as solar energy, wind power and wave energy. Besides, the ship also has a separate floor to store food and drinking water, helping it to operate continuously on the ocean for many days.

Some units such as the US Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) and Europe (ESA) have expressed interest in participating in the SeaOrbiter project. French President Nicolas Sarkozy mentioned this project in an important speech about the sea and received the support of shipbuilder DCNS as well as Thales defense electronics group.

However, the project development team is still looking for other industrial partners to pay the amount of 35 million Euro for shipbuilding. The SeaOrbiter project is still progressing well, a model has been tested at the Marintek Center (Norway) to ensure it can withstand the big waves. As planned, the SeaOrbiter ship project will start construction in October this year and be completed in 2013.

Reference: Gizmag