
Workers release a deep sea landing facility at the world deepest Mariana Trench in the Pacific. [Photo: weibo.com]
"The successful sea test marks another step in China's deep-sea research," Cui said.
Globally, there are 26 hadal trenches, defined as those with depths of 6,500 meters or more. They are home to many unknown species as well as energy and metal resources.
In August, China's unmanned submersible "Haidou-1" dived to a depth of 10,767 meters at the Mariana Trench, setting a new Chinese record.
China became the third country after Japan and the United States to build submersibles capable of reaching depths in excess of 10,000 meters.
Scientists forecast China will have a manned submersible capable of descending to 10,000 meters by 2019 or 2020.
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