Editing Challenger Deep (section)

===1957–1958 – RV ''Vityaz''===
In August 1957, the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] 3,248-ton Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry research vessel {{ship|RV|Vityaz|1939|2}} recorded a maximum depth of {{convert|11034|±|50|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} at {{Coord|11|20.9|N|142|11.5|E}} in the western basin of the Challenger Deep during a brief transit of the area on Cruise #25. She returned in 1958, Cruise #27, to conduct a detailed single beam bathymetry survey involving over a dozen transects of the Deep, with an extensive examination of the western basin and a quick peek into the eastern basin.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://maps.ngdc.noaa.gov/viewers/bathymetry/ |title=Bathymetric Data Viewer |publisher=[[NOAA]] |access-date=9 November 2019 |archive-date=9 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709195021/https://maps.ngdc.noaa.gov/viewers/bathymetry/ |url-status=dead }} [Single-Beam Surveys; Survey ID–VIT27, then zoom into Challenger Deep]</ref><ref>Hanson, P. P., "Maximum Depths of the Pacific Ocean", ''Priroda'' no. 6 (in Russian), 1959, pp. 84–88.</ref> Fisher records a total of three ''Vityaz'' sounding locations on Fig.2 "Trenches" (1963), one within yards of the 142°11.5' E location, and a third at {{Coord|11|20.0|N|142|07|E}}, all with {{convert|11034|±|50|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} depth.<ref>Fisher, R. L., and H. H. Hess, ''Trenches, in The Sea'', vol. 3, Fig. 2, p. 417, 1963</ref> The depths were considered [[Outlier|statistical outliers]], and a depth greater than 11,000 m has never been proven. Taira reports that if ''Vityaz''{{'s}} depth was corrected with the same methodology used by the Japanese RV ''Hakuho Maru'' expedition of December 1992, it would be presented as {{convert|10983|±|50|m|ft|0|abbr=on}},<ref>Taira, K., "Deep CTD Casts in the Challenger Deep, Mariana Trench", ''Journal of Oceanography'', Vol. 61, p. 453, 2005</ref> as opposed to modern depths from multibeam echosounder systems greater than {{convert|10900|m|ft}} with the NOAA accepted maximum of {{convert|10995|±|10|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} in the western basin.<ref>Nakanishi, M., "A precise bathymetric map of the world's deepest seafloor, Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench", ''Marine Geophysical Research'', Table 3, p. 13, 10 April 2011</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://maps.ngdc.noaa.gov/viewers/bathymetry/ |title=Bathymetric Data Viewer |publisher=[[NOAA]] |access-date=9 November 2019 |archive-date=9 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709195021/https://maps.ngdc.noaa.gov/viewers/bathymetry/ |url-status=dead }} [zoom into Challenger Deep to 1&nbsp;km]</ref>