On March 27, the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering was officially established, marking the full launch of the construction of the national major science and technology infrastructure project — the All-Weather Stationary Floating Research Facility in Deep-Sea Areas (a major scientific facility). This world-first, super-large offshore scientific research platform can simultaneously accommodate research needs in marine equipment, marine resources, and marine science, and is also known as the "Far-Sea Floating Island."
Gong Zheng, Deputy Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee and Mayor of Shanghai, together with Ding Kuiling, President of Shanghai Jiao Tong University and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, jointly unveiled the plaque for the institute. Gong Zheng noted that Shanghai, born by the sea and thriving by the sea, shoulders the major mission of serving the maritime power strategy. The establishment of the SJTU Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering is conducive to the implementation of the maritime power strategy, the advancement of Shanghai's modern maritime city construction, and SJTU's progress towards becoming a world-class university. He expressed the hope that SJTU would construct the deep-sea major scientific facility to high standards and utilize it efficiently, playing a greater role in serving national strategies, exploring scientific frontiers, and developing the marine equipment industry. The Municipal Committee and Government will continue to support SJTU's development, jointly writing a new chapter of mutual achievement between a great city and a prestigious university.
The "Far-Sea Floating Island" deep-sea major scientific facility is a national major science and technology infrastructure project and a world-first, super-large self-propelled scientific research platform for deep-sea operations. The Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, a directly-affiliated research platform of SJTU, will explore a new paradigm of organized research characterized by "constructing, researching, and producing output simultaneously," addressing the effective衔接 between "building well" and "using well" the major scientific facility, and promoting deep integration of facility construction with scientific research, talent cultivation, and industrial application. It will systematically lay out its efforts in deep-sea engineering equipment, deep-sea detection methods, and deep-sea resource development.
It is learned that the "Far-Sea Floating Island" major scientific facility comprises three major systems: the facility platform main body, the shipborne laboratories, and the shore-based support system.
The platform main body system innovatively adopts a "semi-submersible twin-hull" design, with a length of 138 meters, a width of 85 meters, and a main deck height of 45 meters. It has a full-load displacement of 78,000 tonnes, accommodates 238 personnel, possesses a endurance of 120 days, and has a maximum speed of 15 knots. It can operate under Sea State 7 and safely survive a Typhoon Level 17.
The shipborne laboratory system is equipped with three categories of laboratories: marine equipment laboratories, marine science laboratories, and public platform laboratories, comprising a total of "6+1" specific labs. The total experimental area reaches 4,000 square meters, capable of conducting research on heavy marine equipment and system technology, full-scale testing of marine equipment, and subsea environmental studies.
The shore-based support system will consist of two major bases: the Shanghai Changxing Base (support base) and the Hainan Sanya Base (supply base).
The facility possesses the capability for full-scale sea trials of hundred-tonne-class large deep-sea equipment and can conduct scientific exploration and experimental research at full-ocean depth (10,000 meters).
In October 2024, Shanghai Jiao Tong University issued a design tender for the All-Weather Stationary Floating Research Facility in Deep-Sea Areas. In November of the same year, the Marine Design & Research Institute of China (MARIC, the 708th Research Institute of China State Shipbuilding Corporation) won the design contract for the Far-Sea Floating Island, with a design period of 330 calendar days and a contract value of RMB 60.88 million. Offshore Oil Engineering Co., Ltd. won the bid for the third-party structural verification services, with a contract value of RMB 2.0283 million.
The project is oriented towards the national strategic arrangements for deep-sea access, deep-sea exploration, and particularly deep-sea development. It innovatively integrates extreme research capabilities such as "ultra-heavy load," "ultra-long endurance," and "ultra-strong typhoon resistance." It can withstand extreme sea conditions, achieve long-term endurance in far-sea areas, and be rapidly moved and deployed. It can operate under high sea states and survive under extreme sea conditions, serving major strategic needs in marine equipment, marine meteorology, marine data, and marine security. It will provide an offshore scientific research base for cutting-edge research in marine equipment, marine meteorology, marine science, and other fields, establish capabilities for continuous full-water-depth in-situ observation and research in marine science, and full-scale testing of marine engineering. It will offer extreme research tools for marine science and engineering.
The construction of this project is of great significance for accelerating the building of a maritime power, safeguarding maritime rights and interests, ensuring the security of national strategic resources, breaking through technological barriers, and breaking technological monopolies.
The "Far-Sea Floating Island" is expected to be completed by 2030. Its unique design allows it to simultaneously support the nation's research needs in marine equipment, marine resources, and marine science. It will provide a full-scale sea trial platform for deep-sea mining systems, key marine equipment and accessories, and offshore oil and gas equipment; accelerate the commercial exploitation of marine resources; reveal the seasonal evolutionary patterns of marine ecosystems and explore the mysteries of the origin and evolution of life; and is expected to further improve the accuracy of typhoon forecasting and enhance disaster prevention and mitigation capabilities.
