Chikyū is operated by the Centre for Deep Earth Research (CDEX), a subdivision of the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC).

[citation needed] The Chikyū Hakken program is part of an international scientific collaborative effort with scientists from the United States, ECORD, a consortium consisting of several European countries and Canada, China, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand (ANZIC), and India.

[citation needed] Key innovations include a GPS system and six adjustable computer controlled azimuth thrusters (3.8 m or 12 feet in diameter) that enable precise positioning to maintain a stable platform during deep water drilling.

[4] On 16 November 2007 Chikyū began drilling the NanTroSEIZE [Reasonator search] transect as planned, reaching 1,400 m (4,600 feet) at the site of a future deep subsea floor observatory.

Local preliminary school children who were visiting the ship at the time of the earthquake spent one night on board and were rescued by Japan Self-Defense Forces helicopters next day.

This record has since been surpassed by the ill-fated Deepwater Horizon mobile offshore drilling unit, operating on the Tiber prospect in the Mississippi Canyon Field, United States Gulf of Mexico, when it achieved a world record for total length for a vertical drilling string of 10,062 m (33,012 feet).

[8] The previous record was held by the U.S. vessel Glomar Challenger, which in 1978 drilled to 7,049.5 m (23,128 feet) below sea level in the Mariana Trench.