The development and the challenges of underwater vehicles for polar expedition

The application of underwater vehicles for polar expedition can result in significant improvements in efficiency, cost-effective, and spatial and temporal density of exploration. Existing technology is adequate to develop advanced underwater vehicles for utilization in polar expedition. Great efforts have been made in developing underwater vehicles using for polar expedition over the world in the last decade. Firstly, this paper describes the actions and necessaries of underwater vehicles for polar expedition in detail. Secondly, this paper surveys the development and applications of underwater vehicles for polar expedition over the world, and presents those in China in particular. The scientists over the world have carried out the scientific research on the underwater vehicles technologies and designed many special underwater vehicles used for polar expedition. SeaPole, a remotely operated vehicle, developed by SIA (Shenyang Institute of Automation, China), is described in detail. This underwater vehicle was used during the China Second Arctic Expedition (from July 15 to September 26, 2003). Many important data, which have not ever been acquired before, are acquired by using this vehicle. Thirdly, this paper discusses the trends of the special underwater vehicles for polar expedition. ARVs, a new type of underwater vehicle, is proposed for polar expedition by SIA, and its concept design and some essential parameters are expressed in this paper. Finally, this paper describes the requirements of polar expedition to underwater vehicles and discusses the special challenges of Polar Regions for underwater vehicles, which include the high-latitude navigation and positioning, low temperatures, ice-covered unstructured and hazardous ocean environment, and so on. These challenges need new advancement in underwater vehicles technologies that can enable the development of more practical, reliable underwater vehicles for polar expedition.