The co-founder of OceanGate, which conducted a fatal excursion to the Titanic last year, is set to embark on a new journey to the ‘Portal of Hell’ in the Bahamas.
Guillermo Söhnlein started Blue Marble in 2013, which recently announced that he and two others will explore the uncharted depths of Dean’s Blue Hole that is more than 600 feet deep.
While divers have explored the region before, Blue Marble will be the first to conducted a manned submersible trip to the bottom where the crew ‘will be in complete darkness’ – the vessel is not yet know.
Unlike the failed Titan the imploded in 2023 and killed five people, the upcoming expedition is to conduct a scientific survey of the area to discover potentially new marine species, unique history, and the hole’s geological climate history.
OceanGate’s former CEO and co-founder, Guillermo Söhnlein, is sending an expedition into ‘portal to Hell’ hole a year after the fatal Titan submersible implosion that killed five people during its descent to the Titanic
The announcement comes amid the one-year anniversary of the tragic Titan submersible (pictured) implosion that killed all five people on board
Also known as the Sapphire Abyss, the hole formed 15,000 years ago and is the third deepest sinkhole in the world, extending down 663 feet – the Titan sub was about 9,800 feet underwater when it imploded.
Blue Marble Exploration has not confirmed when the expedition will set forth, but the announcement comes amid the anniversary of the Titan tragedy that killed all people on board, including OceanGate’s co-founder Stockton Rush.
Söhnlein will explore the hole with scientist Kenny Broad and former NASA astronaut Scott Parazynski.
Broad previously attempted to explore Dean’s Blue Hole in 2015 and nearly lost his life for it – but it was during a free dive.
The hole is surrounded on three sides by a natural rock amphitheater that is visited by more than 200,000 people each year – and it has the most diver fatalities in the world.
It is estimated that 130 to 200 people have died after plunging into the hole in recent years.
‘Locals believe that Dean’s is a portal to hell and the Devil himself lurks in the black depths,’ Blue Marble shared on its website in a post that has since been deleted.
‘Each year, several people drown in Dean’s due to a variety of misfortunes,’ the company shared on its website in a post that has since been deleted.
‘We fully expect to find human remains and prepare to handle those situations with proper respect for the families.’
The abyss is a unique vase-shaped hole with a narrow opening at the surface that leads to the wider cavern below, making it more perilous because the team will be working in total darkness and the company said it will have to ‘expect the unexpected.’
‘Its ecological diversity, significant geological formations, and largely uncharted depths make [Dean’s Blue Hole] an ideal location for scientific discovery and technological advancement,’ the company said on its site.
‘By exploring this mysterious blue hole, we aim to unlock new knowledge about marine ecosystems, Earth’s ancient climate, and potentially reveal undiscovered species.
‘This expedition offers a rare opportunity for investors to support pioneering research that could yield transformative insights and global environmental benefits.’
The team will use an ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) to search for ‘unprecedented findings’ in addition to personally embarking on the dive where they will experience potentially dangerous currents and thermal layers.
Dean’s Blue Hole is the third deepest ocean sinkhole in the world, measuring 663 feet deep
Guillermo Söhnlein co-founded OceanGate in 2009 and formed Blue Marble Exploration in 2013
‘Geologists believe there may be openings along the walls of the main chamber that connect Dean’s to the Atlantic Ocean,’ the website previously explained.
‘This can potentially cause unforeseen currents and thermal layers that could interfere with underwater operations.’
However, one of the primary challenges the team will face is the amount of pressure on the sea floor which will be roughly 300 pounds per square inch – 20 times more than the surface.
The overwhelming pressure is what caused the Titan submersible to implode during its journey to the Titanic, although the vessel was so deep that the amount of water weighing down on it was tens of thousands of tons – equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower.
Dean’s Blue Hole is in an extremely remote location off the coast of Clarence Town at the southern end of Long Island in the Bahamas.
Scientist Kenny Broad (left) who attempted a dive at Dean’s Blue Hole in 2015, will go on Blue Marble’s expedition to once again try to discover the secrets of the 663-foot chasm, along with former astronaut Scott Parazynski (right)
An estimated 130 to 200 people have died after plunging into Dean’s Blue Hole in recent years
The material used on the Titan was believed to have weakened as the pressure on the submersible built, causing it to implode, similar to stomping on an empty soda can.
Crews on the surface lost communication with the sub about an hour and 45 minutes into its dive to visit the Titanic wreck – the investigation into the catastrophe is still ongoing.
Söhnlein, who has claimed he can ‘safely’ send humans to Venus, commented on the incident last year and told CBS News: ‘“Let’s figure out what went wrong, let’s learn lessons, and let’s get down there again.
‘If anything, what we’re feeling is an even stronger imperative to continue doing this kind of exploration work.
‘I think it’s important for humanity, and it’s probably the best way to honor the five crew members who gave up their lives doing something that they loved.”
The OceanGate co-founder told The Independent that he had always planned on exploring Dean’s Blue Hole and last year’s tragedy has not impacted his plans.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Blue Marble Exploration for comment.
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