Top 10 Undersea Vehicles

By Jon Atteberry, HowStuffWorks.com
Editor: Allison Loudermilk

Ask any Star Trek fan and he or she will tell you that space is the final frontier. Marine biologists, on the other hand, can make a good case that the ocean holds as many mysteries as the void of space. According to the National Ocean Service, more than half of all species are contained in the Earth's oceans, which cover roughly 70 percent of the planet. No wonder new species are being found all the time. In fact, nearly 300 new species were found off the coast of Tasmania during two research expeditions from 2006 and 2007.

Even when scientists know a species exists, they can have a tough time learning more about it. For instance, footage of an elusive giant squid was finally captured in 2005 after decades of searching. With so many mysteries remaining, scientists and engineers are more anxious than ever to explore the ocean's depths, and they're building some amazing underwater vehicles to accomplish the task. Read on to learn about ten of our favorite undersea vehicles — some real, some not, some high-tech, some decidedly low-tech.

Who was the first scuba diver anyway? Find out at HowStuffWorks.com.

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