China recently announced successful experimentation with the first bionic robot “fish” in submarine archeology. This fish-like robot was put to work off the Fujian coast last year by archeologists conducting a submarine survey of an ancient battleship that was part of Ming general Zheng Chenggong’s fleet. The robot is capable of working continuously for 2-3 hours at a maximum speed of 1.5 m per second. Its performance was reported as “excellent.”

According to a spokesperson from the Submarine Archeology Research Center of the National Museum of China, the robot is flexible and easy to operate. Its navigating speed meets the requirements of submarine surveys and causes negligible damage to the submarine environment. It also reduces risks to deep-sea divers.