This photography slide at the OZEANEUM was used in the 1970s.

Underwater camera on runners

As commodity prices in the global economy rise, people begin to consider whether the exploitation of manganese nodules and other ores in the deep sea could be economically advantageous. But where and how densely are these resources found? Because it is hardly possible for people to be able to answer these questions on the spot, they are developing tools like the photography slides in the OZEANEUM’s Exploration and Exploitation of the Seas exhibit.

Scientists built the first photography slide in the late 1960s. Just like today, the frame then had to be incredibly robust to be able to withstand the water pressure and low temperatures at great depths. Hidden inside are usually sensitive electronics that are becoming increasingly more sophisticated thanks to the latest technology. The technology of the photography slide of the 1970s housed in the OZEANEUM, now nearly a historical artifact, was never as sophisticated as the camera technology today’s diving robots have. Nevertheless, the built-in black and white camera provided the first impressions of the hitherto unknown seabed and its fields of manganese nodules.

The runners of the slide served to ensure a soft landing of the device on the seabed if necessary. In fact, the slide was dragged several meters along the ground so that the camera could capture a larger image. This was intended to make exploring mineral resources more economical. At the OZEANEUM, visitors can control the photography slide camera themselves and get a better idea of how exploring seabed treasures works.