Deep -sea sensors and seabed maps: what do Chinese vessels off the coast of Australia do

< img src = "/uploads/blogs/a3/96/ib-frp14qgkd_ef7b2715.jpg" Alt = "deep-flowing sensors and seabed maps: what Chinese vessels off the coast of Australia"/~ 62 < p > Chinese deep -sea research vessel has bypassed Australia clockwise and is now west of the continent. Official mission & mdash; Civil intelligence. But it can also perform naval tasks. For example, installing or maintaining acoustic sensors on the seabed and possibly detailed mapping < p >< Em > focus & nbsp; translated & nbsp; article & nbsp; senior analyst ASPI Juen Graham and Ray Powell from Stanford University on China's military presence near Australia.

~ ~ < P > Open sources data make such reasonable assumptions without dumping from accounts the possibility of collecting economic and scientific data.

< P > The Tansuo Yi HAO ship (“Researcher-1”) passed a similar route around Australia in January 2023, examining 1,100 km of depths of the diamondine depression for 34 days. Chinese state media later stated that it was the first case of reaching the bottom of the depression. On board the vessel is a fendouzhe crew (“steep”) capable of performed long immersion to a depth of more than 10 thousand meters.

~ < p >Like 2023, instead of returning home from New Zealand, where it conducted joint work with a research institute, the ship again carried out a long transition around Australia. Its transit stay in the bass duct and within the 200-mile exceptional economic zone (SEZ) of Australia, however, was allowed by international law, provided that the ship was not engaged in commercial research and continuously in motion, showing “proper respect” to the coastal state. < p > However, it was quickly suggested that Tansuo Yi Hao could collect intelligence information about cables at the seabed on Australia. When the media was asked about the presence of a ship, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that “would prefer it to be there”.

< p >Subsequently, the Tansuo Yi HAO ship remained beyond the SEZ when the Grand Australian Gulf crossed. It has not been delayed until a diamondine depression, located approximately 1100 km from the coast of Western Australia, far beyond its maritime jurisdiction.

~ < P > In view of the dual purpose of Chinese maritime research facilities, it would be reasonable to assume that the Tansuo Yi HAO and the submarine have a certain military purpose. Both belong to the Chinese Acoustics Institute, which, according to its own site, has been related to the armed forces for several decades.

< p >Departure of a research vessel around Australia & mdash; A less obvious manifestation of aggression than the deployment of the Chinese Navy in February and March, and Chinese research vessels are more common near Australia than is commonly considered. But this passage & mdash; Another demonstration of China's increasing strategic influence and his interest in operations outside the first island chain.

< P > According to the Automatic Starboard Maritime Intelligence Intelligence, since April 6, Tansuo Yi HAO made stops from 12 to 17 hours above the diamond. This is consistent with the data duration of fenduzhe duration, which is up to 15 hours. During this time, Fendouzhe could install new devices or serve acoustic grates that are already on the seabed near the depression. Sensors, for their part, could collect valuable military information about the signatures of ships passing.

< p >Diamondin depression is too far so that it can be used to monitor approaches to Hmas Stirling & mdash; the only Australian base of submarines and the main center of future combined operations of Australian, British and American submarine within the Aukus program. In addition, it is too deep for underwater operations. However, China has been reported to have developed deep -sea surveillance networks that can work in extreme pressure in the ocean depressions and use the acoustic characteristics of depressions to detect sound signatures at a distance of up to a thousand kilometers, including ships passing and submarines. Listening devices, as claimed, are attached to the cable on the seabed, which is connected to a small buoy, which for its part serves as a power source and a repeater for satellite communication. Almost ten years ago, two systems were installed in deep -sea depressions near Guhar and near Yap Island in the Federal States of Micronesia. Since then, Chinese Sounding Technologies continue to develop in a rapid pace.

< P > Repeated visit of a research vessel to a diamondin depression after two years may be associated with the need to maintain or replace equipment and collect data accumulated from 2023. Unfortunately, Australia has very limited seabed monitoring opportunities outside its continental shelf, so it is likely that Tansuo Yi HAO installs devices on the sea day during its current passage & mdash; or two years ago if it went.

< p >Of course, the Chinese deep -sea expeditions have economic motives and prestige considerations that can even prevail. However, it would be unreasonable to discount from the accounts that Tansuo Yi HAO and other specialized research vessels are also used to support China's naval ambitions.

~ < P > China IUD is probably interested in seabed maps for their future underwater operations, and although submarines are able to mapping only limited areas, thanks to technology development, they can do so with striking details.

~ > < P > Open data do not tell us if Chinese submarines south of Australia have previously acted. However, two recent research expeditions of Tansuo Yi HAO, as well as a recent transit of a Chinese warship south of Australia, testify to Beijing's more strategic interest in Australia's southern coast. This is not surprisingly given the strategic value of HMAS STIRLING. < p > Australia should understand that China pays her more strategic attention because of Aukus initiative and the presence of American forces here. This is most likely the cause of a regular Chinese maritime presence in our surroundings, which includes not only military assets but also double-use platforms, such as intelligence vessels. Assume the reverse means to stab head into the sand.

< h2 > About authors

< p > Juen Graham & mdash; Senior analyst ASPI.

< p > Ray Powell & mdash; SEALIGHT Director, Project of Stanford University to ensure transparency in the sea. From 2017 to 2020 he was an attachment on US defense in Australia.

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