The Deepest Map: The High-Stakes Race to Chart the World's Oceans

The Deepest Map is a book that explores the last mysterious place on earth, the seafloor, and the deep-sea divers, ocean mappers, marine biologists, entrepreneurs, and adventurers involved in the historic push to chart it. By the early 2020s, less than twenty-five percent of the oceans floor has been charted, and over three quarters of the ocean lies in the Deep Sea, depths below a thousand meters. The race is on to completely map the oceans floor by 2030, an epic project involving scientists, investors, militaries, and private explorers. The book follows global efforts around the world, from crowdsourcing to advances in technology, recent scientific discoveries to tales of dangerous dives in untested and costly submersibles. It also explores the opportunities, challenges, and perils this exploration holds now and for the future, including the potential for commercial exploitation and the impact on political power structures.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 31 August 2023
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Inc

The mysterious and action-packed story of the last unexplored place on Earth, the world's seafloor, and the deep-sea divers, ocean mappers, marine biologists, entrepreneurs, and adventurers involved in the historic push to chart it, as well as the opportunities, challenges, and perils this exploration holds for the present and future, is presented in the following text, which has been expanded by 130% to 150%:

Five oceans, the Atlantic, the Pacific, the Indian, the Arctic, and the Southern, cover approximately 70% of the Earth. Yet, we know little about what lies beneath them. By the early 2020s, less than 25% of the oceans floor has been charted, most close to shorelines, and over three-quarters of the ocean lies in what is called the Deep Sea, depths below a thousand meters. Now, the race is on to completely map the oceans floor by 2030—an epic project involving scientists, investors, militaries, and private explorers who are cooperating and competing to get an accurate reading of this vast terrain and understand its contours and environment.

In The Deepest Map, Laura Trethewey documents this race to the bottom, following global efforts around the world, from crowdsourcing to advances in technology, recent scientific discoveries to tales of dangerous dives in untested and costly submersibles. The lure of ocean exploration has attracted many, including the likes of James Cameron, Richard Branson, Ray Dalio, and Eric Schmidt.

The Deepest Map follows a cast of intriguing characters, from early mappers such as Marie Tharp, a woman working in the male-dominated fields of oceanography and geology whose discoveries have significantly added to our knowledge; Victor Vescovo, a man obsessed with reaching the deepest depths of each of the five oceans, and his young, brilliant, and fearless mapper Cassie Bongiovanni; and the diverse entrepreneurs looking to capitalize on the opportunities presented by the ocean's depths.

The exploration of the oceans has been a long and arduous journey, with many challenges and dangers along the way. Deep-sea divers face extreme conditions, including high pressure, low temperatures, and limited visibility, and must be carefully trained and equipped to survive. Ocean mappers must navigate treacherous waters and deal with equipment failures and technical challenges. Marine biologists must study the diverse ecosystems and species that inhabit the ocean's depths, and entrepreneurs must find ways to commercialize the resources and technologies developed in this field.

Despite these challenges, the rewards of ocean exploration are immense. New discoveries are being made every day, and the insights gained from studying the ocean's depths are helping to address some of the most pressing environmental and social issues of our time, such as climate change, ocean pollution, and the conservation of marine life. The mapping of the oceans floor is also a significant step towards understanding the Earth's history and evolution, and may reveal new insights into the formation of the planet and the origins of life.

In conclusion, the exploration of the oceans is a fascinating and important endeavor that holds great promise for the present and future. The race to map the oceans floor by 2030 is an epic project that involves scientists, investors, militaries, and private explorers from around the world. By working together and competing to get an accurate reading of this vast terrain and understand its contours and environment, we can gain a deeper understanding of the Earth and its place in the universe. The rewards of ocean exploration are immense, and the insights gained from this work will help to address some of the most pressing environmental and social issues of our time.

Weight: 426g
Dimension: 160 x 236 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780063099951