The Research Vessel SONNE

...the research vessel SONNE. Together with Captain Lutz Mallon, we invite you on an expedition to the fascinating world of the deep sea, where black smokers and unknown life forms, mineral deposits and new climate information are the focus of our research. We work on these topics each day on board the SONNE, the flagship of German deep-sea research. Let's cast off!

Our journey takes us to the ocean, the birthplace of life on the Earth. The first organisms emerged here 3.5 billion years ago. The world's oceans are around 3,800 metres deep on the average, and cover approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. They provide food and oxygen, and store heat and greenhouse gases. However, the ocean depths remain largely unexplored.

The deep sea is the largest habitat on our planet, and is home to many exotic life forms. They brave the darkness, pressure, and cold, survive on very little food, and have developed special methods for producing energy.

Mineral resources, such as these manganese nodules, lie deep on the beds of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. In addition to manganese and iron, they also contain precious metals such as copper, cobalt, nickel, and zinc. Because of the serious risk to the environment, concrete plans to mine these raw materials have not yet been realized. Intensive research is being carried out on this topic, however.

The shipbuilders worked with a special focus on the design of the hull, as you can see here in a test of a hull model at the Hamburg Shipbuilding Research Institute basin. The SONNE's hull was designed to prevent bubbles from the water surface passing under the vessel and disrupting the echo sounders' reception.

The SONNE's maiden test voyage took place in early summer of 2014 in the North Sea. The research team and crew tested the design of the huge otter boards, among other things. These are used by scientists from the German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources to survey the ocean floor in 3D. After its first voyage, the researchers were full of praise for the vessel.

On July 11 2014, at the headquarters of the Neptun Werft shipbuilders in Rostock, Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel christened the €124.4 million deep-sea research vessel the "SONNE".

Modern technology makes the SONNE a scientist's dream

When the wind picks up, the vessel remains steady in the sea thanks to the system from Intering GmbH: a U-shaped tank fitted across the stern of the vessel and filled with 250 cubic metres of water. When the SONNE begins to sway, water is pumped from one side of the tank to the other, subduing the rolling motion of the vessel.

The SONNE is also setting new standards in the machine room. All the power units are elastically mounted so that they transmit a minimum of vibrations to the hull, even when the diesel engines are running at full speed. The SONNE therefore runs very quietly and with reduced vibrations, which benefits both the passengers on board and life in the ocean.

As a one-of-a-kind German research vessel, the SONNE has two winches with 12 kilometres of steel cable each. These can even reach down into the great depths of the deep-sea trenches. The main windlass is fitted with a mechanism that compensates for the vessel's rocking motion. Constant tension ensures that the cable and research devices always operate at the desired distance from the ocean floor.

A research vessel for all disciplines

To examine samples from the deep sea right away, scientists on board the SONNE have access to work spaces comprising a total of 600 square metres. These areas include 17 labs, around half of which can be cooled to a specific temperature if required.

The water pressure at a depth of around 100 metres is too great for humans to dive to with flippers and SCUBA tanks. Instead, we send down submersible vehicles such as the KIEL 6000. Equipped with headlamps, manipulator arms, cameras, and measuring devices, they explore the deep sea. The robots transfer the pictures they take directly to the research vessel...

Selected research breakthroughs from the decks of the new SONNE

One well-known deep-sea inhabitant is the sea cucumber, like this one found in the Peru Basin. But life on the ocean floor is so diverse that biologists discover new types on almost every dive.

The risk of subsurface quakes is not the same everywhere on the Earth because earthquakes originate predominantly at the boundaries of the lithospheric plates. Where these plates scrape along against each other, snagging on or being forced below one another, tension builds up within the Earth's crust. The tension is released through abrupt motions - the earthquakes. One of the most intense regions for earthquakes is off the western coast of South America, where the Nazca Plate abuts against the South American Plate.

Manganese nodules at the bottom of the Pacific are important spawning grounds for deep-sea octopuses. The creatures lay their eggs on sponges that only grow on manganese nodules. This new discovery highlights the need for thorough research into the ecological effects of potential deep-sea mining.

This ocean-floor depiction shows a newly discovered undersea mountain up to 2,000 metres in height (in red) on the Chatham Rise, a large undersea elevation in the South Pacific surveyed by geologists on SONNE expedition SO246. Their goal was to understand how the plateau was formed over many millions of years.

The German research fleet, with eight ocean-going vessels, is one of the largest worldwide. However, there are more scientists who want to go on expeditions than there are bunks on the vessels. Expedition leaders therefore have to submit applications for vessel time, which are then assessed and selected by a scientific commission.