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Science Weekly

A mysterious millionaire and the quest to live under the sea

Mar 18, 2025
Lisa Bachelor, the Guardian Seascape editor, shares insights from her visit to the Deep project, an ambitious initiative aimed at creating permanent underwater habitats. She discusses the promise of the Sentinel habitat, designed for marine research and human health studies. The conversation dives into the technical challenges and innovative solutions for sustaining life underwater, along with the project's mysterious funding and its visionary goal to enhance our relationship with the ocean. It's a fascinating look at humanity's next frontier!
16:02

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • The Deep project aims to establish modular underwater habitats, facilitating permanent human presence and enhancing marine research capabilities by allowing extended observation of ocean ecosystems.
  • Culinary challenges arise from the underwater environment, prompting chefs to innovate gourmet menu options that retain flavor and meet nutritional needs, ensuring enjoyable dining experiences for future residents.

Deep dives

Innovative Underwater Habitats

The project aims to build human habitations under the ocean, facilitating prolonged stays underwater. These habitats, designed as modular units that can lock together, aspire to create underwater communities, akin to villages, allowing humans to live aquatically. The project, known as Deep, involves a multidisciplinary team including engineers, divers, marine biologists, and chefs, collaborating to make this vision a reality. Despite the enormous financial backing needed, with estimates around £100 million for the campus alone, the funding source remains a mystery, highlighting a deep commitment to ocean exploration.

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