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HOV Alvin

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Alvin during its 2014 science verification cruise in the Gulf of Mexico. The submersible has safely transported over 3,000 researchers on more than 5,000 dives to depths of 21,325 feet (6,500 meters). (Photo by Chris Linder, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Human Occupied Vehicle (HOV) Alvin is part of the National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF). Alvin enables in-situ data collection and observation by two scientists to depths reaching 6,500 meters, during dives lasting up to ten hours.

Commissioned in 1964 as one of the world’s first deep-ocean submersibles, Alvin has remained state-of-the-art as a result of numerous overhauls and upgrades made over its lifetime. The most recent upgrades, begun in 2011 and completed in 2021, saw the installation of a new, larger personnel sphere with a more ergonomic interior; improved visibility and overlapping fields of view; longer bottoms times; new lighting and high-definition imaging systems; improved sensors, data acquisition and download speed.  It also doubled the science basket payload, and improved the command-and-control system allowing greater speed, range and maneuverability.

With seven reversible thrusters, it can hover in the water, maneuver over rugged topography, or rest on the sea floor.  It can collect data throughout the water column, produce a variety of maps and perform photographic surveys.  Alvin also has two robotic arms that can manipulate instruments, obtain samples, and its basket can be reconfigured daily based on the needs of the upcoming dive.

Alvin's depth rating of 6,500m gives researchers in-person access to 99% of the ocean floor.  Alvin is a proven and reliable platform capable of diving for up to 30 days in a row before requiring a single scheduled maintenance day.  Recent collaborations with autonomous vehicles such as Sentry have proven extremely beneficial, allowing PIs to visit promising sites to collect samples and data in person within hours of their being discovered, and UNOLs driven technological advances have improved the ability for scientific outreach and collaboration via telepresence

Alvin is named for Allyn Vine, a WHOI engineer and geophysicist who helped pioneer deep submergence research and technology.

Click on the image below to learn more about HOV Alvin.

Recent News

HOV Alvin temporarily halts engineering test dives

November 15, 2021

Test dives for Alvin’s 6500 meter certification have been postponed, a day after the sub reached a record 5338 meters (17,513 feet)

Meet the Alvin 6500 Team: Drew Bewley

March 31, 2021

Alvin engineer and pilot Drew Bewley on what best prepared him to work on a one-of-a-kind submersible and the overhaul that will take Alvin to 6500 meters.

Meet the Alvin 6500 Team: Danik Forsman

January 21, 2021

Interview with Danik Forsman, Alvin Pilot and mechanical section leader on rebuilding Alvin for 6,500-meters and mentorships that helped him become a pilot.

Meet the Alvin 6500 Team: Lane Abrams

December 22, 2020

Lane Abrams talks about designing electronics for the bottom of the ocean and project management of Alvin’s electrical updates for the 6500 meter overhaul.

News Releases

Sixty Years of Deep Ocean Research, Exploration, and Discovery with Human-Occupied Vehicle Alvin 

June 4, 2024

In June 1964, the world’s first deep-diving submersible dedicated to scientific research was commissioned. What have we learned over the past 60 years?

New Study: Deep Sea Sensor Reveals That Corals Produce Reactive Oxygen Species

December 4, 2023

A new sensor on the submersible Alvin discovered reactive oxygen species for the first time in deep-sea corals, broadening our understanding of fundamental coral physiology    Woods Hole, MA – Just…

Scientists Aboard R/V Atlantis Discover Deep-Sea Coral Reefs in the Galápagos

April 17, 2023

Observations using the newly upgraded human-occupied vehicle Alvin are the first of a deep-water coral reef in the Galápagos Marine Reserve.
The reefs are located at depths between 400-600 m, atop previously unmapped seamounts.

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution honored with IEEE Milestone for Technical Innovation and Excellence

October 27, 2022

HOV Alvin recognized as one of world’s most important deep-sea scientific instruments

WHOI in the News

Woods Hole scientists explore new deep-sea phenomenon

April 11, 2024

‘Like a magic carpet.’ New creature seen by Cape resident off Costa Rica now has his name

March 27, 2024

The mini-sub that carried the first humans to the Titanic is in San Diego looking for fresh discoveries

July 7, 2023

Scientists discover pristine deep-sea Galápagos reef ‘teeming with life’

April 18, 2023

Oceanus Magazine

Bringing a Lab to the Seafloor

December 24, 2014

Scientists can’t really know if new oceanographic instruments will really work until they try them in actual conditions in the real ocean. In this case, the rubber hit the road at the bottom of the sea.

‘Covering’ Alvin‘s History

October 9, 2014

The Spellman Museum of Stamps and Postal History in Weston, Mass., is having an exhibit of postal covers and artifacts related to the submersible Alvin’s 50th anniversary Oct. 3 to Nov. 2.

Alvin‘s Animals

July 2, 2014

From orange octopi and furry yeti crabs to the largest known anemone, pilots and scientists diving in the Alvin submersible continue to find amazing marine creatures.

Alvin‘s Fun Facts

July 2, 2014

Here are answers to some of the questions people have asked about the deep-sea research submersible in its first half-century.

 

Duke University Stories

August 2017

Two Duke Scientists Go To Sea with Alvin

For two weeks last summer, a pair of marine scientists joined the venerated submarine to explore the ocean shelf off Massachusetts

Journal of Ocean Technology

May 2017

The Deep Submergence Vehicle Alvin

An Advanced Platform for Direct Deep Sea Observation and Research