Jiaolong makes second dive in Mariana Trench

ABOARD XIANGYANGHONG 09 - China's manned deep-sea submersible Jiaolong made a second dive into the big blue sea at the Mariana Trench on Tuesday morning.

The dive started at 7 am local time (2100 GMT Monday), after the leaking oil pipe of its hydraulic system had been repaired.

Last Friday, the vessel set a new national record by reaching the depth of 6,671 meters below the sea in the first dive, well surpassing the previous record of 5,188 meters made last July.

The Jiaolong plans to try six dives, aiming to move deeper and deeper toward the 7,000-meter target between mid-June and early-July.

The Xiangyanghong 09, the vessel's oceanographic mother ship, reached the designated dive zone in the Mariana Trench on June 11.