Hoverhand
Chapter 1 — The Mariana Cave

THE MARIANA TRENCH

The deepest point on Earth

Location
11°21'N   142°12'E  —  200km east of Guam
Western Pacific — Mariana Islands
The Numbers

How Deep Does It Go?

10,935
metres deep
35,876 feet — deeper than Everest is tall
1,086
bars of pressure
Over 1,000 times the pressure at the surface
1–4°C
temperature
Near freezing, in total darkness
2,550
kilometres long
A crescent-shaped scar in the ocean floor
Who Has Been There

The Few Who Descended

1960
Jacques Piccard & Don Walsh
Aboard the bathyscaphe Trieste, they became the first humans to reach the bottom. The descent took almost five hours. They stayed for twenty minutes.
Bathyscaphe Trieste
2012
James Cameron
The filmmaker piloted Deepsea Challenger solo to the bottom of Challenger Deep. He spent three hours filming what no human had ever seen.
Deepsea Challenger
2019
Victor Vescovo
In the DSV Limiting Factor, he reached 10,928m — the deepest solo dive ever recorded. He found plastic at the bottom.
DSV Limiting Factor
2020
Kathryn Sullivan
Former NASA astronaut. The first woman to reach the deepest point on Earth — aboard the DSV Limiting Factor. Having already been to space, she became one of a handful of humans to have done both.
2019–2022
Victor Vescovo & Caladan Oceanic
A record 15 dives to Challenger Deep in the DSV Limiting Factor. Vescovo brought scientists, researchers, and explorers along — opening the deepest place on Earth to more humans than ever before.
Life in the Abyss

Creatures of the Deep

Mariana Snailfish
8,336m
The deepest-living fish ever recorded. Translucent, scaleless, and perfectly adapted to crushing pressure.
Amphipods
10,000m+
Shrimp-like scavengers found at the very bottom. They consume anything that sinks from the world above.
Xenophyophores
10,600m
Giant single-celled organisms. Some grow to 10cm across — the largest single cells on Earth.
Dumbo Octopus
7,000m
Named for its ear-like fins. Glides through the deep like a ghost, feeding on worms and crustaceans.
Deep-sea Jellyfish
Various
Bioluminescent drifters. Their faint glow is the only light in a world of permanent darkness.
The Pressure

What the Body Cannot Survive

At the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the pressure is 15,750 psi.
Imagine 50 jumbo jets stacked on top of you.

The Story Begins

The Coast of Guam

"The expedition was meant to map the trench floor.
What they found was never supposed to be found."

Begin