Vanguard now sits on the seafloor at Tennessee Reef in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, marking the first open-ocean U.S. subsea human habitat built, tested and deployed in 40 years.
The 35-foot-by-8-foot habitat is designed for up to four aquanauts on missions of five or more days, giving scientists sustained time underwater to study coral health, ecosystem change and climate impacts.
Deployment included installing a seafloor foundation, securing the habitat and tethering a nearby surface support buoy; sea acceptance testing and commissioning are now underway before DNV classification.
Deep will next train support crews ahead of the first research missions, which are expected to cover reef restoration, long-term monitoring, species surveys, sensor testing and astronaut-style extreme-environment training.
Vanguard is Deep’s pilot system for a broader subsea habitat program and is intended to inform Sentinel, a larger modular platform for longer-term human presence underwater.
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DEEP’s Vanguard Habitat Deployed in Florida Keys: First U.S. Open-Ocean Subsea Research Station in Four Decades
Overview
In June 2026, DEEP made history by deploying the Vanguard subsea habitat at Tennessee Reef in the Florida Keys, marking the first new open-ocean research habitat in 40 years. Vanguard enables humans to live and work underwater for extended periods, using advanced engineering and safety standards developed with Triton Submarines. This pilot habitat is crucial for testing procedures and training crews, paving the way for a global network of modular habitats like Sentinel. Vanguard not only advances marine science and resource stewardship but also inspires public interest, setting a new benchmark for sustained human presence and exploration beneath the waves.