The Mariana Trench cuts down to about 10,935 m below sea level at Challenger Deep - the deepest point on Earth's seafloor. Toggle the ocean-zone depth bands and the Everest comparison to see just how deep that really is.
Published figures: Challenger Deep about 10,935 m below sea level (surveys vary roughly +/- 100 m); pressure at the bottom about 1,086 bar; bottom temperature near-freezing, about 1-4 C; located in the western Pacific east of the Mariana Islands.
Mariana Trench 3D Explorer
This browser explorer shows the Mariana Trench in cross-section: a narrow V-shaped slot cut into the Pacific seafloor down to about 10,935 m at Challenger Deep - the deepest point on Earth. Color bands mark ocean depth zones from sunlight near the surface to hadal at the trench floor, and a translucent plane marks sea level so the true scale of the depression is visible at a glance.
The trench sits in the western Pacific east of the Mariana Islands, formed where the Pacific plate subducts beneath the smaller Mariana plate. Depth-survey figures vary by roughly 100 m between sonar campaigns, so encyclopedic sources round Challenger Deep to about 10,935 m. Pressure at the bottom reaches about 1,086 bar - roughly 1,000 times sea-level atmospheric pressure - and the water stays near-freezing, about 1-4 C, year round.
- Toggle the sea-level plane to compare the trench floor with 0 m elevation
- Toggle the Everest comparison to see the mountain's height planted at the trench floor - its peak still sits under about 2 km of water
- Read depth, pressure, and temperature figures in the panel
- Drag to orbit, scroll or pinch to zoom
- Runs fully in the browser with the vendored three.js engine - no account, no upload
| Figure | Published value |
|---|---|
| Challenger Deep depth | about 10,935 m below sea level - the deepest known point of Earth's seafloor; surveys vary roughly +/- 100 m |
| Location | western Pacific Ocean, east of the Mariana Islands |
| Pressure at bottom | about 1,086 bar - roughly 1,000x sea-level atmospheric pressure |
| Bottom temperature | near-freezing, about 1-4 C |
| First crewed descent | 1960, Trieste (Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh) |
| Notable solo descent | 2012, Deepsea Challenger (James Cameron); also Five Deeps expedition, 2019 |
| Height comparison | Mount Everest (about 8,849 m) would still sit roughly 2 km underwater if placed in the trench |
For the opposite extreme - the highest point on Earth - open the Mount Everest 3D Explorer, or explore another deep basin in the Lake Baikal 3D Explorer.
The Mariana Trench scene downloads its engine once - about 0.7 MB - on your first visit and then runs from the browser cache, so each time you come back to orbit the Challenger Deep slot or re-check the depth figures the viewer opens without waiting on the network.
This is an educational approximation - the trench profile, plate wedge, and vertical scale are schematic teaching cues, not survey bathymetry.
Frequently Asked Questions
How deep is the Mariana Trench?
About 10,935 m below sea level at Challenger Deep, its deepest known point - though different sonar surveys report values roughly 100 m apart, from about 10,924 m to about 10,994 m.
Where is the Mariana Trench?
In the western Pacific Ocean, east of the Mariana Islands, where the Pacific plate subducts beneath the smaller Mariana plate.
How much pressure is at the bottom?
About 1,086 bar - roughly 1,000 times the atmospheric pressure at sea level.
Who has reached the bottom?
Trieste carried Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh to the bottom in 1960; the unmanned Kaiko reached it in 1995; James Cameron piloted Deepsea Challenger solo in 2012; the Five Deeps expedition returned in 2019.
Would Mount Everest fit in the trench?
Yes, with room to spare. Everest is about 8,849 m tall; the trench is about 10,935 m deep, so Everest's peak would still sit roughly 2 km underwater.
Is this a scientific bathymetry model?
No. It is an educational explorer using published figures - the trench profile, plate wedge, and vertical scale are schematic teaching cues, not survey bathymetry.