Seamanship
Open-ocean endurance
Range, weather routing, redundancy, medical capability and a Master empowered to cancel any operation that is unsafe.
Expedition concept
From foundry
to abyss.
The objective is to make the improbable boringly competent: inspect, engineer, transport, sail, lower, document, and avoid awakening anything with non-Euclidean opinions.
Working voyage model
18-22 days in the South Pacific.
The final embarkation port will be determined by vessel availability, permits, freight and weather. Southern Chile is a plausible operational base. Great-circle distance from Punta Arenas to Point Nemo is roughly 1,950 nautical miles; Ushuaia is roughly 2,020 nautical miles. Actual sailed distance would be greater because ships do not generally navigate by drawing a ruler across the Pacific.
At 10-12 knots, each passage is approximately seven to eight days before weather and routing margins. A practical charter therefore needs roughly 18-22 days, including embarkation, outward passage, deployment window, contingency and return.
Days 1-2
Embarkation, loading verification, safety briefings, engineering checks and departure.
Days 2-9
South Pacific passage, weather routing, project briefings, filming and scientific observations where partners are aboard.
Days 9-12
Operational window around Point Nemo: site verification, ceremony, deployment and imaging attempts, with weather margin.
Days 12-20
Return passage, documentation, archive work and contingency for a delayed Point Nemo window.
Days 20-22
Reserve days where charter structure allows; final port operations and disembarkation.
Vessel requirements
The ship is part of the engineering system.
The vessel must be chosen for ocean endurance and deck operations, not for the number of restaurants. Requirements are expected to include competent South Pacific range, adequate reserve fuel, certified lifting or A-frame capability, working deck space, secure sculpture transport, satellite communications, medical capability and an operator willing to support a bespoke deployment.
The final lift plan must be engineered around the actual vessel. Designing the sculpture first and hoping a convenient crane appears later is how one ends up explaining oneself to insurers.
Deck operations
Controlled lifting
Certified lifting points, load path, restraint, crane/A-frame or winch system, tag lines and a documented deployment procedure.
Communications
Beyond the horizon
Satellite communications for weather, safety and project updates, with bandwidth expectations kept on speaking terms with reality.
Project sequence
Feasibility and environmental review
Confirm that the intended object, location and method can be lawful and environmentally defensible. If permanent placement is not acceptable, redesign the project before fabrication locks us into the wrong answer.
Design and structural review
Final sculptural design, mass estimate, lifting points, centre-of-gravity analysis, material specification, corrosion considerations and deployment concept.
Vessel market exercise
Obtain quotations and technical responses from expedition, research and workboat operators capable of the range and lift.
Fabrication
Pattern-making, casting, reinforcement, finishing, inspection and certification of the lifting arrangements.
Freight and port handling
Move the monument and deployment hardware to the selected port, clear formalities and load using an agreed lift plan.
Transit and site operations
Passage to the target region, local verification, ceremonial apology, controlled deployment or authorised alternative, and documentation.
Return and archive
Return to port, reconcile accounts, publish the expedition record, imagery and lessons learned, and determine any follow-up observation programme.
Civilian berths
Six witnesses to the descent.
The working plan allows for no more than six civilian expedition places, priced provisionally at £30,000 per person. The number may be reduced by the vessel configuration, operator requirements or project personnel needs.
The price is intentionally above entry-level specialist expedition cruising. Comparable 18-20 day Antarctic expeditions are publicly priced from roughly £17,000-£22,000 at lower cabin categories, while 23-day voyages can approach or exceed £30,000. This project is far smaller, bespoke and operationally constrained, so a premium is reasonable.
Not a GoFundMe reward. No berth will be sold through a donation. Places would be offered separately only after a vessel contract and passenger terms exist.
Environmental principle
If the responsible answer is "no", the answer is no.
The project will not deploy anything unless we are satisfied that doing so is lawful and environmentally defensible. The London Convention/Protocol framework and applicable national law require specialist advice before any permanent placement at sea is promised.
If the answer to permanent emplacement is no, the expedition concept must adapt: for example, a recoverable deployment, temporary lowering, documentary/scientific operation or other authorised alternative. The punchline does not outrank the ocean.
Frequently asked
Reasonable questions about an unreasonable idea.
Is this actually serious?
The premise is comic. The undertaking is intended to be real. Sculpture, engineering, contracts, vessel operations, regulatory work, passenger safety and accounts would be treated as an ordinary professional project.
Why Point Nemo?
NOAA identifies Point Nemo as the oceanic location farthest from land, at 48°52.6′S 123°23.6′W, about 2,688 km from the nearest land. That makes it an unusually appropriate location for an artwork about remoteness, scale and cosmic indifference.
Are you claiming R'lyeh is really there?
No. The project's working hypothesis says the opposite. The "Probably..." is the joke, not an evidential claim.
How long would the voyage take?
The working model is 18-22 days. A southern-Chile route is roughly 2,000 nautical miles each way to Point Nemo before practical routing allowances, so the passages alone can occupy two weeks or more.
Can I buy a place on the expedition?
Provisionally, yes: up to six civilian places at £30,000 each, but only through a separate contract after a ship, itinerary and operator have been secured. Travel to the embarkation port and personal insurance would normally be additional.
Can I get a berth by donating £30,000 on GoFundMe?
No. GoFundMe is donation-based and currently prohibits ordinary rewards or sales of goods and services in exchange for donations. A berth must be a separate transaction with separate terms.
Can supporters have their names associated with the monument?
That is the intention for principal supporters, but the form depends on engineering and environmental advice. Options include a donor band, plaque, returned expedition ledger or sealed archival register. Nothing should be promised that would compromise the deployment.
Will there be a live webcam on Cthulhu?
A permanent live feed from abyssal depth is technically ambitious and would require power, communications and long-term servicing. The credible first objective is a recoverable deep-ocean camera/telemetry system or a documented descent. Continuous live operation is an aspiration, not a promise.
Can we swim at Point Nemo?
Possibly, but only if weather, water temperature, sea state, recovery arrangements, vessel operations and the Master's judgement permit. It is not included as a guaranteed activity.
What if the target is not reached?
The project is staged. Early funds can support feasibility, design, legal work and quotations. Major irreversible commitments should not be made until the funding and permissions justify them.
What if permanent placement is refused?
The project will not dump an object at sea merely because the webpage looked enthusiastic. An authorised recoverable or temporary alternative would be developed, or the deployment element would be cancelled.
What if Cthulhu rises?
That would constitute potentially significant evidence against H0, the null hypothesis - our default assumption that Cthulhu does not exist and nothing supernatural will happen. Peer review may be delayed.
NOAA - Where is Point Nemo?oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/nemo.html
Quark Expeditions - current expedition rates used for berth comparisonquarkexpeditions.com/uk/dates-and-rates
GoFundMe UK - current reward/promotion guidanceGoFundMe Help Centre