India’s first Polar Remotely Operated Vehicle operationalised in North Antarctica

India’s first Polar Remotely Operated Vehicle (PROVe) was successfully operationalised for research in North Antarctica on 25 March 2015. PROVe has been indigenously built by National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) under the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences.

Union Minister for Earth Sciences Harsh Vardhan made the symbolic launch of the PROVe from the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) headquarters in Chennai.

The results of PROVe’s findings will contribute vastly to mankind’s understanding of climate besides enhancing the capability to predict the Monsoon

What will PROVe do?
• Monsoon prediction and reading of pattern will become easier
• It will measure parameters like ocean currents, temperature and salinity in the Arctic
• It is capable of probing the sea bed under normal temperature and is capable of exploring up to 200 meters in inhospitable and tough regions like the ice clad Antarctica.

PROVe was successfully deployed in Priyadarshini Lake located on the Schirmacher Oasis of Antarctica by ESSO-NIOT. The Priyadarshini Lake is a major source of water for Maitri, India’s second base in the Antarctica.

About ESSO-NIOT
ESSO-NIOT is part of an Indo-US initiative under the Monsoon Mission program of the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences.

ESSO-NIOT involving the participation of several institutions is studying the science behind the monsoonal events of Bay of Bengal using both Indian and US research ships using special equipment.