The laboratory is semi-submersible oceangoing craft and weighs 1000 tonnes. It has a total height of 51 meters with 31 meters below sea level.
It is designed to float vertically and drift with the ocean currents but has two small propellers allowing it to modify its trajectory and maneuver in confined waters. Underwater robots can be sent from the laboratory to explore the seabed. The hull is made of an alloy of aluminum and magnesium, and is five times thicker than that of a conventional vessel.
Its vertical alignment in the sea will leave a small part visible above the surface with much larger accommodation and laboratories below the sea's surface. Some levels will have a cabin pressure equal to the external water pressure allowing divers to live for extended periods at depth and make frequent excursions.