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Pressure Test

More than 100 employees took part in various aspects of the two-year project to overhaul and upgrade the submersible Alvin. They included engineer Griffith Outlaw, seen here preparing a component in WHOI’s high-pressure test chamber. Technicians spent weeks pressure-testing components on the sub to ensure that they could withstand the same pressure as the personnel sphere in which pilots and scientists dive. Right now, Alvin will be certified to go to 4,500 meters, but 6,500 meters is the goal after phase 2 of the Alvin upgrade. The test chamber is sealed and pressurized to reach 14,700 pounds per square inch.(Photo by Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)