mapping the deep 2 government.) Before its initial visit to Challenger Deep in 2019, only two other human-piloted expeditions had ever made it to such depths. But on this fine day a little more than three years later, the Limiting Factor is embarking on its 19th such dive. It’s an indication of how far deep-sea exploration has come in such a short time that a trek to what was once the most difficult-to-reach place on the planet is now starting to feel almost routine, like catching a flight. And yet there is nothing ordinary about this dive, especially not for the two people in blue jumpsuits who are sealed inside the submersible’s Smart Car– sized cockpit. One of them, Victor Vescovo, is responsible for maneuvering the vessel on its way to and from the bottom of the ocean. It was his quest, launched in 2018, to personally visit the deepest point in every ocean that led to the formation of Caladan Oceanic—a science and technology firm dedicated to increasing humanity’s understanding of the deep. (Strictly speaking, our planet has only one, connected ocean, but it’s traditionally been divided into five major regions: Dawn Wright prepares to enter the Limiting Factor submersible.
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