MINI BELIEVE IT OR NOT –

In the 1990s, the CIA developed “Charlie,” a robotic catfish that swims just like a real fish.

  • Charlie was created to study the feasibility of unmanned underwater vehicles
  • Charlie had design capabilities that included speed, endurance, maneuverability, depth control, and radio communications
  • The CIA catfish contains a pressure hull, ballast, and communication systems in the body, and a propulsion system in the tail
  • Charlie’s mission was to collect water samples while undetected

MINI BION

“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.