What it feels like being a fish in a great big fish tank.
Footage from off the West Coast of Cozumel
The Internet tells me ocean covers over 70% of the Earth’s surface, and less than 5% of the ocean has ever been explored. That’s 65% of the globe humans have never seen. Over half of the plant is still a mystery. And a foreign world it is down there. No need to go to Mars. If you want to see an alien planet, look under the sea.
I took my first plunge under the ocean on a trip to the Philippines in 2009. I had no previous experience. After a short safety video and a couple demos in the shallow with the gear, they threw us on a boat and headed out to the reefs. (I’d like to note here, scuba diving is dangerous. It requires the proper training and safety measures).
It was amazing! Aside from the first five minutes of panic attack. I’m a bit claustrophobic and being under the water, my natural reaction was to bolt back to the surface for air. But wait! I could breathe, under water. I had to mentally calm myself down. Just breathe: slow, easy, breaths, breathe. It’s quite a foreign feeling and took a bit to adjust. Our tanks had about 30-45min of oxygen, depending how fast and heavy I’d breathe.
At no time should a diver ever hold their breath (for pressure equalization reasons). For every ten meters below the surface the pressure increases 10x that of surface. It’s important to understand the deeper the dive the more risk and pressurization needs to be paid attention to. Volume decreases deeper and deeper. It is not recommended to dive with any sinus issues. The little air pockets in the skull need to equalize as pressure changes, kind of like flying in a plane but sinusly intense.
image courtesy of the Internet:
http://www.scuba-doc.com/dcsprbs.html
Perhaps humans will never be able to reach the unexplored parts of the earth due to the great depths and pressure miles below the surface. What lurks below will remain a mystery. So let’s go to the moon! …or Mars. It might be easier travel.
Music by: Radiohead "Exit Music (For A Film)"
