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Shark
fever reaches new levels with claimed sighting of Bull Shark.
The
Shark Trust is surprised at the recent reporting of a supposed sighting
of a bull shark by two surfers in Sennen Cove, Cornwall.
Despite
the best efforts of global warming it would take a huge expansion
in the range of the bull shark to see one in UK waters. The bull
shark (Carcharhinus leucas) is a tropical and subtropical species
that favours stable water temperatures between 21 and 30 degrees
Celsius. The Caribbean or the West African coasts represent the
closest populations to the UK.
Identification
of any shark through the water column requires a high degree of
experience and more so if you are engaged in another activity. Sennen
Cove is one of the country’s key sites for basking shark activity
and it is far more likely that the shark sighted by the surfers,
as with the first ‘mako’ sighting, was a basking shark.
British
waters contain an exciting diversity of sharks none of which have
been responsible for an attack on beach-goers but it is far from
likely that we can add the bull shark to our list of seasonal visitors.
Atlantis
Rising - Mythology meets reality in new Cayman Island dive site
One
of the greatest mythological cities in history is now the newest
dive site in the Cayman Islands. Just off Cayman Brac the city first
spoken of by Plato is being assembled by a local artist, creating
one of the most exciting new dive options in the world, now offered
by Brac Reef Beach Resort (BRBR).
Guided
tours to the underwater creation are available Oct. 1 – Nov.
15. “Diving Atlantis” includes 7 night’s accommodation,
6 days of 2 tank dives, all meals, airport ground transfers, taxes
and the first opportunity to dive Atlantis. A visit to renowned
Bloody Bay Wall is also included. Visit www.bracreef.com
for more information.
Plato
spoke of the alluvial seaport of Atlantis that the Gods had destroyed
when its inhabitants had become corrupt and greedy. Ancient mythology
has met with modern day fantasy however in a visioning project by
Cayman artist Foots in the waters off Cayman Brac he has begun assembling
his vision of the ruins of Atlantis. The 51 year-old artist who
recently became a citizen of the Cayman Islands, said he first envisioned
the project as a child.
“I've
always been fascinated with ruins, history and mythology and this
project is a vision in my mind, not from any other drawings or renditions,
but simply from my own fantasy – my own expression,”
he says. “I am very, very thankful to the local government
for allowing me to fulfill my dream, and I hope this will be my
legacy – my gift to the world.”
The
size and scope of the project are a divers dream. His plans involve
over 150,000 lbs of sculptures, which have started to be placed
off the north shore of Cayman Brac in a large sandy area, at a dive
site called Radar Reef.
Phase
one consists of the Archway of Atlantis and the Elders’ Way
- - a pathway lined with eleven 5-foot temple columns leading to
the Inner Circle of Light, itself an enormous Sundial and base weighing
nearly 10,000 lbs. And on schedule for late June to early July this
year is the 18 ft tall Pyramid of Atlantis in excess of 40,000 lbs.
Nature
has starting moving into the Lost City already which Foots says
adds to the mystery and mood of the dive site.
“Things
are already covered in moss and are getting fleshed out, “
he says. “There are cleaner shrimp everywhere and they in
turn will bring other forms of life to the site. There are also
an abundance of Sting Rays and Eagle Rays that are in the area,”
Foots says.
Brac
Reef Beach resort manager Trudy Viers, says she's pleased that the
resort will be able to offer its visitors yet another dynamic diving
option.
“Foots
really had a vision and he's doing a remarkable job and this will
provide a very unique and memorable dive - - its a real tribute
to Cayman Brac,” she says.
As
the sculptures are in about 40 to 50 feet of water, Viers says the
dive will be accessible for all certified divers.
“This
is a novice dive site so it will be quite accessible,” she
says. “On any given day you will see an abundance of marine
life – you could see just about anything.”
Brac
Reef and Reef Divers II offer guests a choice of 120 dive sites
dotting all 26 miles of the Caribbean Sister Islands of Cayman Brac
and Little Cayman. World-renowned Bloody Bay Wall, the Russian Frigate
wreck dive “MV Capt. Keith Tibbetts” and numerous little-known
pristine dive sites of Cayman Brac await.
Other diving
highlights at Brac Reef Beach Resort and Reef Divers II include:
three boat dives per day, two night dives weekly, PADI, NAUI and
SSI instruction, unlimited use of tanks for shore dives (with a
buddy), the only full Nitrox station on the island and 80 degree
water with unlimited visibility.
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Red
Tide ‘damaging fish life’ on west coast of Ireland.
An algal bloom
called Red Tide continues to be a threat to fish and shellfish in
the Galway coastal area.
Satellite images
show that the bloom, which began off the Donegal coast in mid June,
has now extended to areas of the Galway coast.
In large concentrations
Red Tide can lead to the death of shellfish such as Pacific oysters,
cockles, crabs and fish that live near the sea-bed, such as plaice.
“Various
species of fish and shellfish have been affected by it,” said
Kevin Rogers of the Western Fisheries Board. “Word is that
it has caused damage to fish life - there were dead fish in Killary
Harbour one month ago. However there haven’t been any reports
of kills of oysters in the Galway region so far, but the potential
for all kinds of shellfish to be affected is there,” he added.
The bloom has
lead to major fish and shellfish kills in Dingle Bay this summer,
and an absence of prawns along the Donegal Coast. There have been
some reports of killings of pacific oysters, cockles and lugworms
along the west and northwest coast, according the Marine Institute.
Red Tide, or
Karenia Mikimotoi, is a microscopic plankton species which was first
identified on the east coast of the US in 1957, with blooms being
recorded in various parts of the world during the 70s, 80s and 90s.
It was first reported on the Irish coast in 1976 in the South East.
The last serious outbreak was in 1995, but the Marine Institute
said that marine life mortalities due to Red Tide in 2005 were on
a scale not previously seen. The bloom diminishes oxygen supply
and is mildly toxic to marine life.
Red Tide is
not harmful to humans, although Marine officials have warned the
public not to pick or handle wild shellfish in an affected area.
The
Marine Institute is continuously monitoring the outbreak and regular
updates on Red Tide are available at the Marine Institute website:
www.marine.ie.
Diver
loses leg in boat incident
A 40-year-old
diver is in a stable condition in hospital after losing a leg when
he was hit by the propeller of a boat off the Northumberland coast.
The man, who was with a diving club from Leicester, had to have
one of his legs amputated at the knee and suffered injuries to his
other leg.
The
man, who was diving near Seahouses, was flown by air ambulance to
Newcastle General Hospital on Saturday afternoon.
The
Marine Accident Investigation Branch and police are investigating.
Man
charged for baiting sharks with fake seal
A Constantia
man has been charged with harassing great white sharks in False
Bay.
The
man, who may not be named until he has pleaded in court, was seen
towing a rubber decoy designed to look like a baby seal behind his
catamaran, apparently to attract great whites.
Two
tour operators working on boats around Seal Island saw the man and
alerted Marine and Coastal Management (MCM).
Pat
Stacey, chief MCM inspector for False Bay, said he had waited for
the man to return to the yacht club in Simon's Town.
'It
has a nice bite mark on it'
"He and his son were on board. The guy came off carrying a
bag and when I searched it, I found the decoy. It was made of pink
rubber and cut out to look like a seal. It was about the same size
as a baby seal. It has a nice bite mark on it.
"It
is illegal to harass great white sharks, the same as it is illegal
to harass whales and dolphins, but there is no distance one is required
to stay away from white sharks," Stacey said.
He
said MCM had had several complaints recently about people harassing
sharks in False Bay.
"Because
of the complaints we had to take action against this guy. He claimed
he did not know it was illegal.
"The
two tour operators who saw the incident said the catamaran had come
whizzing past them dragging the decoy and they both saw great whites
leaping out of the water trying to get the decoy. I suppose people
do this to show their friends the big sharks, or to take photos,
I don't know," Stacey said.
Stacey
said there were operators licensed to take tourists to see sharks.
These operators had to abide by strict permit conditions. In this
way, the public could see sharks, but in a controlled manner.
MCM
is conducting research on the impact of the shark tourist industry
on shark behaviour. The incident happened on August 6.
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Tigers
in Africa - sure, and Great White's too!!!!
Combine
Great White cage diving and free diving (no cage) with Tiger Sharks.
This is something divers only dream about, but in South Africa dreams
come true!
We
have been baiting areas to the south of the main Aliwal Shoal for
over the last four years and the success rates have been as follows:
How
do they dive with the Tigers?
Option
one, which is not their preferred option, is to set up baits on
the seabed at 15/17m and then observe the sharks as they come to
the baits to feed. As many as 8 tigers at once may be expected but
typically two or three are the norm at any one time. The animals
tend to arrive around 09h00 and stay until the divers leave the
site. The group of no more than 8 divers conducts either one or
two dives. The most number of passes (a pass is measured to within
1 metre of the diver) in a single dive is 68 by Betty (a 4.5m female)
in 2000.
The
most number of continuous days without a tiger sighting whilst working
on the bottom is five, although we had a White Shark, Hammerheads,
Zambezi and Blacktips to take up the slack during this period.
Option
two and the most recommended option is sub surface drifting. Over
the last two years (2002/3), we started the surface work a la’
the Great White Shark cage diving, but without a cage, and it has
been very successful, other than breaching we are getting all the
other behavioural stuff that they get with the Great Whites.
Once
we arrive at the dive site we start chumming so as to attract the
Tigers and pot out a buoy with the bait. When the first Tigers appear
the dive master assesses the situation and if he is of the opinion
that the Tigers are going to stay around a while and that they are
not aggressive the divers may enter the water. Either you can view
the action from the “safety” of the boat, or for non-certified
divers, on snorkel, and certified divers can drop down to about
5 meters and follow the action from below. This is a drift dive
as the boat, chum and bait is drifting with the wind and surface
current, as are the divers at 5 meters. Should the sharks disappear
the snorkellers and divers climb back onto the boat and we move
to another location and start all over again.
Typical
visibility is from 5 to 40m and water temperature between 22 and
28 Celsius depending of the time of year. Daytime temperatures range
from 20 to 38 Celsius.
This
method has delivered 100% success over the past two years. 2003
offered the best animal interaction year so far. 17 sharks presented
themselves. Made up of 3 males and 14 females. The biggest animal
was a return female, Marion, at 4.0m. Barbara-Ann arrived back after
a year’s absence and was a major player. One of the animals
tagged in the 2002 acoustic study (Ashleigh 3.5m pcl) returned and
was one of the nine regulars. The longest surface wait at one site
was 40 min and the shortest wait was 7 min. 2004
delivered 20 identifiable animals and of these two were males.
So
far 2005 has continued with a 100% sighting success per day per
dive. We have identified 18 sharks and new ones are entering the
area on a weekly basis. One animal has returned from the 2004 tagging
study and many new faces have been documented this year.
Join
Dive The Big 5 on a three day Great White Encounter and then fly
to sub-tropical Durban for 3 days free diving with Tiger Sharks.Contact
www.divethebig5.com
for more details.

Chepstow
Quarry gains New Name, and Management Ethos
Exhibitor
Limited are proud to announce that they have expanded their operations
with the purchase of The National Diving Centre. With plans to develop
the site into one of the UK’s finest diving and activity centres,
it is only natural that there has been a name change to reflect
this. Please welcome the ‘National Diving & Activity Centre’,
www.ndac.co.uk
“For
those of you unfamiliar with the NDAC, the quarry offers divers
some of the finest inland dive opportunities in the country with
depths ranging from 6 metres – 80 metres”, stated Neil
Brock, Diving Manager of the NDAC. “Safety is important to
us, so we have been liasing closely with RoSPA (Royal Society for
the Prevention of Accidents www.rospa.org.uk) as we develop the
site. We’ve worked hard to make divers aware of the deep water
with permanent signage both above and below the water, and this
has included painting one of the pontoons bright red, to indicate
to divers the deep end of the quarry. Additionally we have ‘30
Metre Rules’ in place to help guide divers to err on the side
of safety. These include no diving beyond 30 metres in a semi dry
due to water temperature, and no diving beyond 30 metres without
a torch or a redundant self carried reserve supply of gas. Naturally
we advocate that all divers dive within their qualification limits
and experience. We take all safety issues very seriously so we are
due to start a tagging trial using pop concert multi-coloured tags
shortly.
Exhibitor
Limited formally took the reins in February, and we have been delighted
with the backing that the new Owners have given us. There are major
plans for the 55 acre site including new hotel accommodation, access
entrance and road, log cabins and of course more outdoor activities.
These include abseiling, zip sliding, and 4x4 Off Road weekends
under the guidance of Richard Hopkins. (A revered character on the
offroad driving circuit who has competed numerous international
events including the Dakar – Paris Race). Incidentally speaking
of driving, we are only 2.15 hours drive from the Hammersmith Fly
Over in London.
With
our Five Year plan just starting I know that we are in for an exciting
time at the NDAC. Why not come and see what we are all about. For
further details check out www.ndac.co.uk.
Chepstow
Quarry
10,000
mm Under the Sea – The Cross Channel Scuba Challenge
World Record Attempt on behalf of Orchid Cancer Appeal
At
the end of September, founder and President of men’s cancer
charity – the Orchid Cancer Appeal – Colin Osborne,
and six other highly experienced scuba divers are aiming to be the
first to relay dive the English Channel.
Colin
Osborne stated, “Why do the event? For two reasons. Firstly
it has never been done before, and whilst it will be cold and the
logistics involved are immense, we are not just looking to achieve
a World Record. We are looking to help the battle against male cancers,
as it is far from won.
Secondly,
2005 is my tenth year in remission. This is not a day I thought
I’d see when I was told I had three months to live ten years
ago”. Colin nearly lost the fight in 1996 due to his delay
in seeking medical attention for a lump. What had begun as testicular
cancer (which has a cure rate of over 97% if caught early enough)
ended up with his chances of survival being less than 20% and 18
months of debilitating and distressing treatment. Due to the skill
and research of his Oncologist – Professor Tim Oliver, and
his fantastic team at Bart’s Hospital, Colin’s life
was saved. He set up The Orchid Cancer Appeal with Professor Oliver
in 1996 and we were the 1st registered charity dedicated to funding
research into the causes, diagnosis and treatment of male cancers
– prostate and testicular – and raising awareness of
these potentially fatal diseases.
Colin
observed, “the first ever fundraising event I ever undertook
for The Orchid Cancer Appeal was a sponsored dive in the lake at
Ilford Gold Club to see how many golf balls I could retrieve. This
Cross Channel Scuba Challenge may be a bit more challenging than
the lake at Ilford, but the reasons are the same, to make everyone
more aware of male cancers, so that we can all fight the battle
together. We are aiming to dive the week starting 24th September
but this is dependent on weather conditions, however we have a six
day window of Neap Tides”.
Angus
Somerville, Chief Executive of The Orchid Cancer Charity Appeal
stated, “Colin’s idea of a Cross Channel Scuba Challenge
is characteristic of the approach he has taken to raising the visibility
of male cancer, since he founded Orchid back in 1996. It’s
novel, exciting, dependent on team effort, and makes people stop
and take notice. 10,000 Millimetres Under the Sea (with apologies
to Jules Verne) seeks to increase awareness of male cancer and raise
funds for the charity’s work into prevention diagnosis and
treatment of testicular, prostate and penile cancers. A group of
experienced BSAC, IANTD, PADI, TDI and Royal Navy qualified divers
will swim at a depth of 10 metres all the way from England to France.
This demands technical competence, physical stamina and of course
the good old British weather to be kind to us. When they complete
this, they will land a place in the record books!
Please
take time to support these divers as they attempt the first ever
relay dive of the Channel, by buying a raffle ticket, making a donation,
or even turning up to wave them off – although, you could
do all three! What is great news for divers is that the raffle is
a diving one, with a top prize of a week’s holiday for two
to the Red Sea. If you can dive, there’s also a dive pack,
and if you don’t then you can learn on an Open Water Course
courtesy of Longwood Holidays and the Red Sea Diving College. (Conditions
apply).
We
would like to take this opportunity of thanking our Sponsors, without
whom 10,000 mm Under the Sea would still be a dream;
•
Vivaldi Potato by Naturally Best (main sponsor)
• Active Scuba
• Charterhouse
• Datum Press
• Goodman Baylis
• IST Proline
• Longwood Holidays
• Mindon Tiling
• Ocean Reef
• PADI
• Royal Navy Diver Training School
• Sport Diver Magazine
• Sea & Sea
• St X Design
• Suunto
• Timunta Sea
• Virgin United
For further details of other great diving raffle prizes or the Orchid
Cancer Charity, check out www.orchid-cancer.org.uk
“We are hugely delighted that a number of dive shops, inland
sites and diving clubs from all agencies have said they will support
us by selling these diving raffle tickets. We would like to take
this opportunity of thanking everyone who is helping us with this
event”, stated Colin Osborne.

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New UK management for Tasik Ria Resort, Manado
Eco
Divers has appointed new UK managers to run their dive centre at
Tasik Ria Resort, Manado.
Steve
and Janet Prior, Course Director and Staff Instructor respectively,
have been involved in the diving industry for over 18 years. For
the past four years, they have been conducting Instructor Development
courses for UK dive centres as well as teaching instructor level
training in Specialties and Emergency First Response.
As
founder of Chelmsford–based Adventures in Diving, which Steve
took to a five star IDC centre, and as manager of Emperor Divers
in Hurghada, Steve is highly qualified to understand, and deliver,
just what a diver wants from their holiday.
“Janet
and I work well as a team and our satisfaction comes from being
good at what we do. Dive centres find our enthusiasm for the sport
is infectious and leaves divers with a real feel-good factor,”
said Steve.
Steve
and Janet have dived in many places around the world and have logged
more dives than either can remember! Manado, though, is different,
with lots of everything from small Macro stuff to large pelagics
and the incredible sights to be enjoyed with muck diving.
The
couple are passionate about their sport and thoroughly enjoy teaching
and guiding all levels of diver and educating them to enjoy and
respect what nature has provided with Speciality Courses being a
particular interest.
“We
don't do bravado. We don't do daring. We don't do ‘let’s
see how deep we can go’. We don't do ‘let's kill the
fish by feeding them’. What we do well is observe and instil
excitement about the fascinating, and often strange, habits of the
fish that are right in front of us on every dive. Whilst we take
our role as instructors seriously, we are always light-hearted and
enthusiastic about our diving,” explained Janet.
Their
philosophy can be summed up by Steve’s favourite Latin phrase,
‘docendo discimus’, which means ‘by teaching,
we learn’!
For
full information go to www.eco-divers.com.
The
‘Aberdeen connection’ makes Scapa Flow Long Weekends
accessible to all divers
Divers
seeking an alternative Scottish Weekend will be delighted to hear
that North Link Ferries have made the option of a long weekend in
Scapa Flow viable. Traditionally Scapa Flow diving has been a week’s
event. After receiving many requests from loyal divers who use the
Aberdeen connection, John Thornton has launched four day ‘long
weekend’ charters on the Karin. This is proving popular with
the latest invaders of Scapa Flow.
“We’ve
noticed that with more demands on leisure time, more of our divers
are giving Scrabster a miss and driving straight to Aberdeen instead”,
stated John Thornton, Skipper of the Karin. “Having talked
to them, it does make sense because of the distance and time saved.
You can drive from Birmingham to Aberdeen in 7.5 hours and for divers
north of the Border, Glasgow is 3.15 hours and Edinburgh a mere
1.5 hour drive, so divers are laughing at the reduced travelling
times. We’ve found that the Thursday night sailing at 17:00
from Aberdeen on North Link Ferries www.northlinkferries.com is
proving especially popular with divers, as they are in Kirkwall
by 23:00. This means that on Friday you go diving”.
The
beauty of the Karin is that it is driven by a man who has been sailing
and diving the Orcadian waters for over twenty years. In fact John
also teaches diving, making him one of the most experienced and
qualified Skippers to work Scapa. Therefore on the Karin divers
get all the important things in life, like big wide benches to kit
up on, a range of exotic gases on tap which are blended to a ‘T’,
slack when it should be (more or less), a good Scottish Breakfast
(when requested), and a skipper who understands what divers need.
“I’m
very lucky that I’ve a consistent, loyal customer base that
keeps on coming back because they know what they are going to get,
so I do a lot of day charters and liveaboards. Obviously”,
John grinned, “there is more flexibility with a liveaboard,
for instance on the four day charters we can sleep over at Long
Hope or Burray. But that is where the beauty of the Flow comes into
it’s own. Where else can you find Blockships, Cruisers and
Battleships right on your door step, and it doesn’t really
matter too much what the weather is doing. With it being so protected
you can get out diving pretty much all year around up here”.
John’s
experience of leading expeditions as far afield as Singapore has
given him a huge insight into trip planning. “We want everyone
to have a good time and one of the better ways of ensuring this
is prior planning. When divers are not sure of something, the best
thing they can do is hop onto the website (www.scapaflow.com) and
drop me a line. We can organise B&B’s, tanks, equipment
hire, nitrox, trimix, an onboard cook, and of course training. Please
get in touch if you have any questions”.
The
Thursday sailings from Aberdeen now mean that a long weekend in
Scapa is easily achievable for all divers. For those of you who
have not yet experienced the magic of The Great Harbour, a four
day long weekend charter (sailing from Aberdeen) is a perfect way
to introduce you to the renowned wrecks and legendary landscapes
that is Scapa Flow.
Images
from Scapa Flow (c) Ian Potten
UK
wreck diver missing off Dorset coast
The UK Coastguard has deployed a helicopter and boats to search
for a scuba diver who went missing off the Dorset coast on the 5th
August.
The
missing diver, a 48-year-old female, was scuba diving with Divers
Down on the wreck of the Kyarra.
The
Divers Down crew called the UK Coastguard after the victim's buddy
surfaced and alerted them of a missing diver emergency. In addition
to Coastguard helicopters and boats, the Swanage-based dive boat
"Killer Prawn", police and privately owned vessels joined
in the search. Divers also searched the wreck site.
Despite
fair weather, searchers have found no trace of the missing diver.
Gentle
giants swimming into danger
Scientists
monitoring the movement of whale sharks from Western Australia's
Ningaloo reef, off the state's north-west, say the giant fish often
swim into areas where they are in danger of being slaughtered for
their fins.
Scientists
from the CSIRO and the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS)
began tagging six whale sharks in May and have been tracking their
movements over the Internet.
One
of the sharks has already reached Jakarta while others have headed
off into the Indian Ocean.
All
are still alive but AIMS scientist Dr Mark Meakin says they are
swimming into danger.
"Whale
shark flesh is the world's most expensive shark product that you
can buy," Dr Meakin said.
"It's
expensive because people in places like Taiwan have a particular
liking for it. "
Dr
Meakin says most of the sharks headed off quickly after being tagged.
"One's
been hanging around the bottom of Java in Indonesian waters for
about a couple of weeks," he said.
"A
couple of others have swum up towards Christmas Island now seem
to be headed out, out into the open Indian ocean somewhere.
"A
couple of other sharks on the other hand seem to be quite happy
at Ningaloo and have only just left there after we tagged them a
couple of months ago in May."
Dr
Meakin says the satellite tags are yielding new information about
the shark's behaviour.
"They
not only give the shark's position, they also tell you about the
water temperature it's been swimming in and the depth it's been
diving to," Dr Meakin said.
"Now
these sharks are pretty champion divers. Some of them are getting
over a kilometre down into the inky blue and cold water. What they're
doing down there we have absolutely no idea."
|
| New
PC scuba diving game!
Biart
Company informs of development of the most trustworthy diving simulator
'Diver: Deep Water Adventures'. Click all screenshots to
enlarge.

The
depths of world ocean have been always attracting a man, as if embraces
of a fatal beauty. Thousands dare-devils sent on a meeting to adventures.
Attracted by treasures of the sunken ships, the mysterious nature,
and the legends.

In
the game you should plunge into underwater life and accomplish the
enormous quantity of unforgettable tasks. Nevertheless, to earn
for living with diving, you'll be able just after graduating from
the courses and becoming the professional diver. Special attention
in game is given to the reality. Any underwater mission represents
a real place and event. For example, in one task you will have to
moor in passage Kattegat for searching and rising of the documents
from the sunken submarine of the Second World War.

Game
is positioned as trustworthy diving simulator which will be interesting
not only for fans of immersion to the depths of the seas and the
ocean, but also for the people who have little in common with this
pastime.
Features:
- Complex
diving simulator
- Mix
of strategy / action
- Dive
worldwide
- 2
types of game: arcade and simulator
- System
of training and video courses
- Opportunity
of research of the real sunken ships
- More
than 15 real dive-sites
- Unlimited
number of locations
- Real
equipment
- Treasures
lifting
-
Hunting for huge sea predators
-
Clever and heartless competitors
-
Opportunity of an underwater photo
-
Night and day time diving

Appearance
of the project on PC is planned for the end of 2005. Click here
to view the website. We hope to review this software as soon as
it is available.
|
South
Florida Scientists Create Shark Repellent Dr.
Sonny Gruber, a University of Miami shark expert, heads up World
Class Research in Bimini, Bahamas. His research team has proven
that sharks hate or fear the smell of rotting shark carcass.
"And
so we have been extracting certain chemicals out of these dead carcasses,
purifying them and testing them on those Caribbean reef sharks,"
Gruber said. "And it worked. It worked very well."
Research
video shows sleeping baby sharks thrash wildly after they're given
a whiff of shark repellent. And bigger sharks blasted with repellent
quickly flee.
The
U.S. Navy wanted a repellent because sharks were chewing submarine
equipment.
But
with shark attacks back in the news this summer, the company marketing
the repellent says it could be available as something lifeguards
can throw in the water during an attack.
Eventually,
they hope to make a bracelet for swimmers and divers -- maybe even
a sun block mixed with shark repellent.
Shark
repellent could be popular in protecting humans from sharks. But
also, researchers say a repellent could save thousands of sharks
at a time when shark populations are plummeting.
Studies
show about 100 million sharks are killed every year, often by fishermen
who are after tuna or swordfish but accidentally catch sharks instead.
Gruber
says if fishermen put the shark repellent on the bait, the tuna
and swordfish won't care, but sharks will stay away.
"If
I can protect those baits from sharks biting them, but the fish
bite them, then I can save 40 to 50,000 sharks a day," Gruber
said. "That is what I'm all about with these shark repellents."
Gruber's
scientists are testing the shark repellent around the clock. They
soak some yellow sponges with the repellent and place the sponges
on hooks. The bait attracts other fish but not sharks. On a hook
without the repellents, Gruber's team reeled in a small shark and
quickly released it.
The
process is repeated many times because Gruber says there's no room
for error when creating a shark repellent to protect humans and
sharks. The shark repellent could be on the market as early as next
year.
Diver
breaks world record without realising
A
scuba diver from Borehamwood has broken the world record for the
longest ever open water dive, by staying underwater for more than
24 hours.
Diving
instructor Will Goodman, 28, from Stapleton Road, broke the record
just off the coast of Bali, Indonesia, while training for his ultimate
goal of spending an entire week underwater, which he is planning
to do next month.
But,
as he emerged from the sea in Gili Trawangan on Monday last week,
he was greeted by hundreds of cheering locals waving banners and
screaming in the streets, and local television crews.
"I
couldn't believe it. I came up and there were children screaming
my name and press everywhere," he said.
"It
was all very surreal and I was understandably very disorientated
but the adrenalin was amazing."
When
Will was under the water, he played games such as hangman and poker
with other divers, read a book of short stories and managed to consume
boiled eggs, potatoes, bananas and energy drinks — all of
which were pushed through plastic straws.
"It
wasn't easy," he said. "At one point, I got so cold, I
had four people hanging onto each limb to warm me up and had to
get some special massages while I was under there. I was in a semi-dry
wet suit so the freezing cold water was touching every limb.
"I
had to cover my entire body with vaseline before I went in to fend
off any extreme wrinkling and protect my skin."
In
order to qualify for the Guinness world record, Will had to stay
at least ten meters below the surface at all times and none of his
equipment was allowed to touch the surface of the sea.
"I
managed to doze off for ten minutes here and there but didn't get
any proper sleep.
"I
had a brilliant support crew who were with me every step of the
way and I just can't wait to do the full week. I have a lot more
training to do but hopefully I can get my name in the record books
twice this year, which will be amazing."
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