Rebreathers are rapidly growing in popularity, below is a list of international manufacturers. If you know one we don’t, send a web link to mail@divermag.com Ambient Pressure CCR 2000 Divematics Draeger ExtendAir HB Technology Innerspace Systems Corp Kiss Rebreathers rEvo rebreathers Silent Diving Steam Machines Titan Dive Gear VR …

Sixth in series of reports on Rebreather Forum 3 by Michael Menduno. The diving media and interested Rebreather Forum participants were treated to a preview of the lovechild spawned by Poseidon and Dr. Bill Stone, CEO of Stone Aerospace. Called the Poseidon TECH (DIVER Volume 37 Number 4), the …

Fifth in series of reports on Rebreather Forum 3 by Michael Menduno. Similar to 02 sensing problems discussed in a previous RF3 report posted here, divers must contend with issues concerning PCO2, which has been dubbed the “dark matter of rebreather diving.” High PCO2s (0.03 bar and above) can …

Fourth in series of reports on Rebreather Forum 3 by Michael Menduno. In addition to training and creating a culture that reinforces safe rebreather diving practices, experts agree that a number of safety issues might be resolved through better engineering of the equipment itself. Indeed, this is the thinking …

Third in series of reports on Rebreather Forum 3 by Michael Menduno. Veteran explorers and educators Jill Heinerth and Terrence Tysell chaired an open discussion on training at the Rebreather Forum, encouraging participants to present views on a host of training related topics. In keeping with the RF3 theme, …

First in a series of reports on Rebreather Forum 3 by Michael Menduno. Rebreather Forum 3 staged in Orlando, Florida, saw the convergence of a rebreather diving ‘who’s who’ to discuss and debate this life support system that is hailed as the future of diving by some and anything …

Text by Bret C. Gilliam The following discussion picks up from the current issue of DIVER Magazine – Volume 37 Number 4 – now on newsstands. Against the background of an historical perspective and today’s ardent debate on this subject author Bret Gilliam advocates the dissemination of more accurate …

OCEANIC B.U.D. $329.95 This universal backup dive computer with its patented dual algorithm will closely match your primary computer. Clip it on and forget it. But if you need a backup, count on your B.U.D. www.oceanicworldwide.com AERIS Atmos BC $535.95 A rear inflation BC with wrap-around air cell design …

SS Atlantic: The White Star Line’s First Disaster at Sea By Greg Cochkanoff and Bob Chaulk SS Atlantic was lost in 1873, 39 years before the iceberg infamy of Titanic, her corporate sibling. Though different, the magnitude of both tragedies, each with great loss of life, commanded world headlines. …

SEALAB is the Right Stuff for inner space, a story of how a U.S. Navy program sought to develop the marine equivalent of the space station and in the process forever changed man’s relationship to the sea. While NASA was trying to put a man on the moon, the …

This Exosuit is production model 001 and the first in a series of three designs from Nuytco Research of North Vancouver, B.C. From the first ergonomic mock-ups and tests to its unveiling last month, the Exosuit has been in development for a decade. It’s the latest generation atmospheric diving …

The latest deployment of NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) has begun with the international crew of aquanauts entering the habitat, Aquarius, yesterday for a twelve day mission. Aquarius, the world’s only undersea laboratory, is located in about 63 feet (20 metres) of water, three and a half miles …

  Most divers won’t descend below 130 feet (40m) though diving deeper is very appealing to many of us, myself included. It opens up new territory: deeper wrecks, caves, walls, blue holes, and for others it’s a way to conduct research or make a living. But for some it’s …

Descending is an exciting new weekly TV show now airing on Canada’s Outdoor Life Network, and featuring some stunning underwater video from around the world. Descending is an offshoot of Departures, another OLN adventure series showcasing the relationship between two travelers and all that is revealed to them as …

DIVER magazine scours the internet so you don’t have to. Simply browse our selection of todays top stories and click for further reading… This round up of “Little known facts about the ocean” has some great statistics. Read article. Source: Marinebio Post Valentines Day blues? Maybe this picture of …

By Jean-Michel Cousteau I have traveled most of my life and have seen changes in the sea that no one, not even my brilliant father, could have predicted.  Jacques Cousteau, however, did point the direction on many things—the danger of nuclear waste, overfishing, habitat destruction, even the high cost …

By Phil Nuytten In the summer of 1986, Jacques Yves Cousteau was in Vancouver, BC, accompanied by his son and producer, Jean-Michel. They were in the city to take part in Expo ’86, an international exposition that was attended by hundreds of thousands of visitors from all parts of …

Ablaze with what appears the reflection of a dazzling fireworks display, the eyes of a Red Irish Lord (Hemilepidotus hemilepidotus) add to the brilliant colouration of this striking species of sculpin. Its typically vivid coat can vary from hues of orange through red to magenta and into striking pinks …

Two hundred billion gallons of foaming seawater swirl through Sechelt Rapids on each turn of the tide in this constricted, islet-strewn passage on Canada’s Pacific coast. In the aerial view to the northwest, looking from Sechelt Inlet toward Jervis Inlet, a 13.5 knot ebb roars through the shallow gap. …

The Muskallonge or Muskie, as she is affectionately known in diving circles, is not so well known in her watery grave as she was in service on the Seaway. Then, she was touted as the largest tug on the Great Lakes. Built in 1896 at Port Huron, Michigan, she …

In the late 1970s I worked on a dive boat called the Oceaner.  Owners Gary Mallendar and Larry Mangotich, manufacture exposure suits under the Oceaner name and distribute dive gear such as the TUSA line, across Canada. Their vessel has been retired for their private use.  On several occasions …

By Jean-Michel Cousteau It’s often called ‘The Law of Unintended Consequences’. The simple explanation for this law is when we do something we believe is good or helpful but there is a counter, unexpected reaction that is not always so good. That is exactly the case with human sunscreens …

A mid winter opportunity to dive Browning Pass in B.C.’s Queen Charlotte Strait delivered up cold February winds and rain… but when they abated and the sun came out we were treated to some of the best visibility I’d ever enjoyed in these remarkably fertile waters at the top of …

Genny Simard, interpreter at the Fundy Discovery Aquarium in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, holds Big Dee-Dee, a 22-pound (10kg) lobster (Homarus americanus) caught three years ago in the adjacent waters of the Bay of Fundy. A part of the Huntsman Marine Science Centre, the public aquarium is Canada’s newest …

Winter diving weather along the British Columbia coast is not infrequently overcast but when the sun peaks through the clouds up there in the sky, divers can be rewarded with the best visibility of the year. This photo was taken during such a winter’s day in Agamemnon Channel, which …

DIVER magazine scours the internet so you don’t have to. Simply browse our selection of todays top stories and click for further reading… Beneath The Waves Film Festival 2012 is now open for submissions. If you have a marine/ocean orientated film (not necessarily underwater), under ten minutes long then …

DIVER magazine scours the internet so you don’t have to. Simply browse our selection of todays top stories and click for further reading… A very nice video on global reef restoration, made for the PADI Sea the Change Conservation Contest in 2011 it is still worthy of a mention Watch …

DIVER magazine scours the internet so you don’t have to. Simply browse our selection of todays top stories and click for further reading… UK wreck HMS Victory to be explored by Florida based salvage company Read article. Source: chron.com Would you eat dolphin or manatee? Popularity for these animals …

DIVER magazine scours the internet so you don’t have to. Simply browse our selection of todays top stories and click for further reading… What better way to clean up an oil spill than with magnetic soap… Read article. Source: New Scientist A nice video to help ease you into …

DIVER magazine scours the internet so you don’t have to. Simply browse our selection of todays top stories and click for further reading… 3.5 ton underwater statue disappears from Italian coast. Read article. Source: The Daily Telegraph Australian cave divers set new records. Read article. Source: Nelson Mail Sounds …

Don’t worry, we’re not tying to sell you a new exercise bike or diet plan. Women’s fitness magazine, Shape has revealed that SCUBA diving can help you burn 400 – 500 calories per dive. Although this may not be news to anyone that has done a long surface swim, …

Diving Medicine By Dr. David Sawatzky A seizure is a sudden surge in electrical activity of the brain that alters how an individual feels or acts for a short period of time.  In a classic ‘grand mal’ seizure a person looses consciousness, all of their muscles contract for up …

Diving Medicine By Dr. David Sawatzky In this column we will look at the breath-hold diver who suddenly looses consciousness in relatively shallow water.  These individuals often die from drowning.  This phenomenon has been called ‘shallow water blackout’ but the term should be avoided – it’s confusing.  Initially shallow …

Diving Medicine By Dr. David Sawatzky Frequently, I receive reader questions. The following (edited) enquiries raise several issues of interest. Does Nitrox Have a Taste? Should Nitrox taste any different from regular air? I’ve noticed a difference. Air is odourless and tasteless in contrast to Nitrox, which I found …

Diving Medicine By Dr. David Sawatzky In the last two columns I reviewed inert gas narcosis.  High Pressure Neurological (Nervous) Syndrome (HPNS) is a similar problem that is experienced on deeper dives.  It is a difficulty that recreational divers will never experience but advanced technical divers are increasingly performing …

Diving Medicine By Dr. David Sawatzky Every diver knows that when they go diving they need to pee.  They also know that any cold water diver who claims never to have peed in their wetsuit is either lying or has logged very few dives. Finally, it’s fair say that …