Relevance: GS-3 (Science & Tech); Source: The Hindu, NIOT brief

India’s Samudrayaan mission—the nation’s first attempt to send humans 6,000 m below sea level—faces delays due to late delivery of syntactic foam, a specialised buoyancy material sourced from France. This foam is essential for testing the steel submersible to 500 m depth before the final titanium sphere is deployed.

About the Mission & the Instrument

• Samudrayaan is part of India’s Deep Ocean Mission, led by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT).
• It uses MATSYA-6000, a three-person crewed submersible that will dive to the ocean floor for:
  • mineral exploration,
  • biodiversity studies,
  • sampling of hydrothermal systems.
• Syntactic foam: A composite material of hollow microspheres in resin; provides buoyancy, stability, and withstands extreme deep-ocean pressure.

Significance

• Places India among the few nations capable of human deep-sea exploration (USA, Japan, France).
• Supports strategic goals:
  • Polymetallic nodule exploration in the Indian Ocean,
  • Development of indigenous deep-ocean technologies,
  • Strengthening Blue Economy objectives under SDG 14.

UPSC Prelims Practice Question

Which of the following is/are correct about Syntactic Foam?

1. It is used to provide buoyancy in deep-sea submersibles.
2. It is made of metal alloys that resist corrosion.
3. It can withstand extremely high pressure at great ocean depths.

Select the correct answer:
A. 1 only
B. 1 and 3
C. 2 and 3
D. 1, 2 and 3