| Russian sub sets world record in Lake Baikal dive |
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| Thursday, 31 July 2008 11:24 | |||
LAKE BAIKAL, Russia (AFP) A Russian mini-submarine reached the bottom of Lake Baikal on Tuesday, setting a record for the deepest dive in a lake, expedition organisers said.
"The Mir-2 has reached the bottom of Lake Baikal at a depth of 1,680 metres (5,512 feet)," ITAR-TASS reported from the barge where the submarine was diving from. The dive "has set a record for submersion in freshwater," Vesti-24 said. The scientific expedition is being organised by Artur Chilingarov, a pro-Kremlin member of parliament and an Arctic explorer who led the submarine team that planted a Russian flag at the bottom of the North Pole last August. Scientists plan to collect samples at different depths and hope to document the effects of global warming on the Siberian lake, as well as drawing the attention of the government to the need for greater environmental protection. "We want to study and observe Baikal, preserve it," Chilingarov said on Monday ahead of the dive as he inspected the Soviet-designed Mir-1 and Mir-2 submarines in the small port of Turka on the shores of Lake Baikal. Expedition member Anatoly Sagalevich said the expedition could turn up new species of wildlife living at the bottom of the lake, which has never been explored, as well as possible reserves of gas and oil under lake. 
The expedition also has a political dimension. Chilingarov said he had "full support" from Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and a flag for the ruling United Russia party flew from the expedition's barge.
Lake Baikal is the deepest lake and largest reserve of freshwater in the world, although not the largest lake in terms of surface area. Environmental groups say pollution is threatening the pristine lake.
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