Chris Chew asked:


Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is regarded as one of the world’s most popular scuba diving holiday destination. The Great Barrier Reef is situated off the east coast of Australia and it is the only living organic collective on earth, said to be visible from outer space.

This Australian reef is also regarded as one of the wonders of the world and was declared as a World Heritage since 1981. It is the world’s largest coral reef ecosystem and being so huge, scuba divers are offered a large array of magnificent dive sites and bountiful marine life to enjoy.

The Great Barrier is more than 300,000 sq km (115, 831 sq miles) in size and is the home to more than 3000 smaller reefs. Deciding where to scuba dive in this huge diving destination can certainly be a happy problem because of the many astounding choices.

Wreck diving is a favorite scuba diving activity. Amongst the many wrecks are Captain James Cook’s ship “Endeavour”. Another popular wreck is the HMS Pandora, which sunk in 1791. All in all, there are about 30 shipwreck dive sites for scuba divers to explore.

An amazing 2 million people visit the reef annually spending about a billion US dollars collectively and entrenching tourism as the main pillar of the eastern Australia economy. Since tourism dollar is very important, it is thus vital for the Australian economy to protect the reef from destruction and hence the magnificent reef protected in many ways. As a form of protection, even recreational fishing is restricted to only certain areas and animals such as dolphins, whales, dugongs are protected species.

For the more adventurous divers, there are dives organized to view shark feedings, especially the ferocious man eater, the Great White Shark, which shot to stardom in the movie Jaws and its sequels. Divers are lowered into the clear water in steel cages to view these man eating sharks closed up.

Let us take a look at some of the popular dive locations in Great Barrier Reef :-

Cairns and Port Douglas - This is the area of the reef that is closest to the Queensland coast. It is because of this proximity to tourist centers and accommodations, the area attracts the biggest numbers of divers here than anywhere else in the Great Barrier Reef. There are some good dive spots here for beginners as well as for experienced scuba divers.

Southern Coral Sea - You encounter crystal clear water, steep drop offs, and pelagic fish when diving in The Southern Coral sea. Huge colorful soft corals and gorgonians sea fans are typical features in this dive spot.

The Coral Sea is a “must dive” location for braver scuba divers who get a thrill out of mingling with menacing sharks.

Southern Great Barrier Reef - This area is the largest section of the Great Barrier Reef. However, since it is further away from mainland Australia,it is less accessible and diving done here are usually from liveaboard cruises. The Heron Island and Lady Elliot Island in this part of the Barrier Reef offer the best accessibility.

If you are planning a holiday vacation to Australia, why not make a trip to The Great Barrier Reef and go scuba diving there?

Peter Hansson asked:


The phrase ‘best but used scuba equipment’ might sound like an irony, but believe it or not, such is entirely possible. However hard finding the best but used scuba equipment might be, it is still something that is feasible, given your combined efforts and time. What you need to understand about scuba diving is that it can be so expensive. But why should you curtail your love for the sport just because of lack of money? Fortunately, you can get to experience your favorite sport with, at the same time, the best scuba equipment. The best part with having the best scuba equipment, also, is that it comes for a very cheap price. Indeed, all these you can have - only if you know when, where and how to look.

Why should I buy used scuba equipment?

The first step in scuba diving is having the scuba equipment you need to have in order to plunge yourself into the sea. Of course, you don’t necessarily have to own your own scuba equipment in order to scuba dive. An option you have is to rent out in a scuba diving store, which, more often than not, also offers free tutorial services. There’s nothing wrong with this. However, if you are already halfway toward being an amateur scuba diver, then you might have no need for a tutor in scuba diving. And if you are, really, an amateur scuba diver, then you must have already realized how much the scuba diving store is earning for your scuba equipment rental. Compute the total money you have paid them for renting their scuba equipment, and to your realization, you might find out that the money you have spent can well be spent already on used scuba equipment!

Early on, you have to realize just how far you are willing to go for scuba diving. This will determine your decision of whether or not to buy used scuba equipment. If you have rented scuba equipment one time too many but are not planning to be a hardcore scuba diver, then you should just as well buy used equipment. This will save you the money in the long run.

Is there such a thing as best but used scuba equipment?

Buying used scuba equipment is one thing, but buying the best but used scuba equipment is an entirely different thing. You ought to understand, however, that both are entirely possible, though in varying concentrations. Used scuba equipment can be found everywhere - from your nearest beach to even your next door scuba diving fanatic neighbor. The question, however, is this - what are the chances that the used scuba equipments that they’re selling are fantastic and has no hidden defects?

The preceding question might have only increased your fear in buying used scuba equipment, but be totally unafraid. If you look hard enough, you can find the best but used scuba equipment deals around the corner. Yes, there is such a thing as best but used scuba equipment. These can be determined by the length of time used and the quality of the actual equipment. You, yourself, can determine this through your senses.

What used scuba equipment should I purchase?

But not all used scuba equipment should be purchased. For one, buying a used swimsuit or mask is close to unacceptable. However shortly used the scuba mask and suit is, if it is used and had been worn and torn even for just a short period of time, then don’t even reconsider. You might put your own life in danger in the end.

But there is best but used scuba equipment which you should look out for. This includes the scuba tank, scuba gauge, scuba regulator, and many others.

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JB Mills asked:


There are people who are closer to the mountains and then there are people who feel closer to the ocean or the sea. For those who love the mountains there is rock climbing and for those who love the oceans, there is scuba diving. Most of the beach towns in the world have scuba diving on their menu and offer some of the most exotic views of the ocean world. If you are traveling to Australia, you will get to see the almost stunning eco system under the ocean, which is more famous as the Great Barrier Reef. It supports thousands of marine life and scuba diving is the only way to reach there. Scuba diving allows you to see a completely different world separate from the one you live in.

Just because there is an ocean doesn’t mean that scuba diving is easy. You need to gather as much information possible on scuba diving and regarding the hot spots. You also need to know swimming. And remember, for starters a shark infested colony would be the worst place to scuba dive. Scuba diving will open your eyes to a world that you can only dream of. You can get to see thousands of varieties of fishes, planktons, corals and many others. Some of the best diving sites are in the Bahamas, Australia, Florida, and Mexico, although you can find your own new scuba diving site almost anywhere in the world except Antarctica. There you will end up freezing!

Without proper knowledge and training, diving can be a very dangerous sport. Therefore all commercial diving companies require certification that their customers have completed at least some sort of basic diving course. These courses are available in most of the same areas (and even from the same companies) that offer the actual scuba diving trips. As a trainee, you will head out with professional divers who will take you on multiple training dives. This way, you will become familiar with equipment and techniques, and eventually earn a certificate that will allow you to go on for the more serious dives.

Once you have a diving certificate, the opportunities will be endless. If you want to focus on a particular area, such as ocean life, you can pick a particular spot which is rich in marine life. In some of the scuba diving ventures, you can even swim along with dolphins or other fishes and or get surrounded by schools of fishes. This can be quite exciting and adventurous and probably be the best way to spend your vacation. Alternatively, if you are more interested in exploring, you can go scuba dive around reefs or caves that will provide amazing and unspoiled underwater landscapes for you to enjoy.

There are several risks associated with scuba diving, but with proper training and with good equipment you are not likely to encounter them. You need to pay close attention to water pressure during the descent and ascent. You have to time the changes in pressure accordingly in order to avoid injuries. Injuries can include damage to the ears and sinuses. Other problems include hypothermia, which happens in freezing waters as well as problems with pressurized gas. If you take a diving course, you will learn how to handle these issues, as well as how you can prevent them from affecting your dive.

Scuba diving is an immense opportunity and should be enjoyed by everyone at some point in their life. However, it is not something that you can simply go out to the ocean and do. It takes time and preparation to understand the working of the equipment and the basic diving knowledge to keep you safe. Ultimately it is worth the effort, and allows for an ocean experience that you will never forget.

Peter Emerson asked:


Scuba wet suits were not taken seriously until World War II and
the advent of Navy Frogmen (SEALs) who became one of America’s
most effective weapons of the war. On any kind of measurable
basis, costs of operations versus costs of effectiveness,
man-to-man, or overall kill ratios, the SEALs exceeded
expectations on any level. Once recognized, the military put a
much time and money into improving the effectiveness of its
frogmen. That meant improving the design, effectiveness and
durability of wet suits.
There is a controversy that developed at the time over whether
or not wet suits had to remain dry. Sounds like a set up for a
joke but it’s not. All underwater, rubberized protective outfits
are called wetsuits. The controversy was over whether heat loss
from the diver’s body could be controlled better if the wetsuit
kept his skin dry or not. It was Hugh Bradner who is credited
with the first wet suit in 1952. Mr. Bradner was actually
working as a physicist at UC Berkeley’s radiation laboratory
where he was testing the reflections of shock waves on
unicellular material and was invited to attend a Swimmer’s
Symposium. His concept was that the diver’s skin does not have
to stay dry to prevent heat loss if the thermal insulation used
in the wet suit was obtained by air entrapped in the material of
the suit.
With the French invention of the Aqua-Lung, Self Contained
Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) was used in the war and
afterwards spawned investigative teams exploring the ocean’s
many mysteries. As soon as this began, the pressing need for
wetsuits was made painfully obvious by the divers suffering from
hypothermia after only a few dives. The divers tried everything
from greased long johns to leftover Air Force survival suits,
and the Bradner wet suit. Bradner was the first to use a
unicellular material similar to the type he was working with in
the radiation laboratory in his wet suit. The material came from
a company called Rubatex and was called Neoprene and the
original model for today’s high-tech, three-level wet suit was
born

Peter Hansson asked:


If you are planning to try your hand at scuba diving, then you must have had a lot of realizations. One is that scuba diving is not as easy as it seems. Considered formally as a sport, scuba diving is not like other sports because it requires not just strengthening of a particular body area but rather overall wellness and fitness. Another disappointing and probably alarming realization you might have had is that the price with which scuba diving comes translates to a lot. This means that, in order to play the game, you might have to shell out a lot of money. This is exactly why scuba diving is deemed as a recreational sport by some - only a few people can afford to scuba dive as much as they can because it involves a lot of money. So if you are planning to be one of those people, then it might be time for you to find places where you can buy used scuba gear.

Why should I buy used scuba gear?

Taking from the word itself, used scuba gear is scuba gear that has been used for a certain period of time. You may sneer at the idea of buying used scuba gear. This is not surprising since the thought of buying something that has been used by other people may seem inconceivable and even foolish. However, the price by which scuba diving equipment comes for can be very taxing, and it may be very illogical for you to get a brand new set of each tool and gadget needed in your scuba equipment. Rather than going for this kind of illogical move, the only alternative available for you is to buy used scuba gear. In the end, you save a lot of money without necessarily compromising the quality. You ought to remember that, sometimes, you have to compromise your values in order to attain what will be, in the end, best for you.

Also, you should look into buying used scuba gear if you don’t think you are going to use it successively. If you are planning to buy scuba gear just because you will need one whenever you take a vacation - which is something that only happens every once in a while - then, you better go and buy used scuba gear.

What components should I look for in buying used scuba gear?

Admittedly, it is not ideal for you to buy an overall used scuba gear. For example, if you are going to buy an overall used scuba gear that includes a used scuba suit, then you might have a problem with that. A used scuba suit implies that the suit has not only been worn from head to toe by the original possessor, but it has also been stretched to its limits. You cannot expect the medium size of a brand new scuba suit to be the same size of a medium-sized used scuba suit. This is because the fabric has been stretched, and many damages have been done to it. Therefore, you should look into the matter of buying used scuba gear very carefully. For all you know, you may be buying all the wrong components in a used scuba gear.

But there are also excellent choices for a used scuba gear. For example, buying a used underwater compass might be ideal, inasmuch as an underwater compass is something that does not easily break. Also, buying a brand new compass is very expensive. In the end, the expense by which a brand new compass comes is not worth it. You might get the same quality with a used scuba compass, if you look hard enough.

Michelle Bery asked:


There’s nothing quite as mysterious as that which is contained underwater. Since the beginning of time, man has attempted to explore the deep of the sea; to investigate the secrets it holds. The modern equivalent of this exploration is scuba diving - a one-man voyage that can yield enormous adventure. But before you can dive, you must crawl, so to speak.

Deciding whether scuba diving is right for you depends solely on your personality. If you’re someone who enjoys swimming, exploring, and adventurous activities, then chances are you will thoroughly enjoy scuba diving. However, in order to complete the training and scuba dive safely and successfully you must also be in good physical health.

If you have an interest in scuba diving you can get your feet wet through scuba instruction. In order to participate in scuba diving in open water, you must be trained and certified in scuba. You can find a host of training facilities in towns and cities throughout the world - regardless of whether or not you live near the ocean. Scuba diving instruction is given in indoor pools because of the controlled environment. But before water work even begins, students are given extensive classroom instruction to familiarize them with the essentials of scuba diving.

Once in the pool, the instructor will put the classroom instruction into practice, allowing students to practice techniques associated with scuba diving. Scuba diving instruction can take place over many weeks; it is imperative that students receive thorough training in order to ensure their safety. The culmination of training will be your certification in scuba diving. And you’re on your way.

Reputable instructors can certainly point you in the direction of finding scuba gear that will be essential for your dives. Equipment necessary for scuba diving includes a wetsuit, flippers, eye and face mask, and oxygen tank and accessories. You also have the ability to rent equipment prior to any dives; just be sure that you are taken out by scuba professionals who are reputable and experienced.

Scuba diving can be an unbelievable experience that will forever transform you. Take the steps necessary to ensure your safety and the rest is pure enjoyment.

James Penn asked:


Caribbean, Hawaii, and Galapagos islands are all ideal places for snorkeling because of their calm waters and diverse sea life. Clear waters are another requirement for good snorkeling because some marine life can be viewed only at night. Night snorkeling is typically conducted with the aid of a chemical light that is tied around the waist of the diver to warn approaching boats of divers while an underwater torch is used to spot the marine life. Caribbean snorkeling is nothing new but the underwater seeing trend is catching fire all over the world and so there is a renewed interest in this activity.
Caribbean snorkeling needs gear that is quite similar to scuba diving gear and includes mask, finds, and a short tube known as snorkel (from which comes the name snorkeling). Caribbean snorkeling takes place in still water and just below the surface. These areas are typically lagoons so that moving water does not enter the snorkel to inconvenience the diver.
The renewed interest in Caribbean snorkeling is a result of the clear waters in the Caribbean that offer many good opportunities for underwater sightseeing. This is also helped by the varied marine life in the Caribbean that includes fish, mollusk, kelps, jellyfish, ray, seaweed and algae, all of which may be experienced at close range. The marine life in the Caribbean is far varied and denser than the land life, making it a good sightseeing location for nature lovers.
Unlike rafting or bungee jumping, Caribbean snorkeling is not exactly an adventure sport because there is hardly any risk involved in the activity. However, the lack of risk should not be taken to mean a lack of thrills. Since Caribbean snorkeling is done in relatively shallow and still waters, the equipment is minimal and very light, thereby making the whole experience very comfortable. Due to all these reasons, even young children can enjoy snorkeling as long as they know how to swim.
Though the amount of risk involved in Caribbean snorkeling is quite negligible, there are still some dangers that you ought to be mindful of. The most common problem faced is mask flooding, when water enters the mask that is worn underwater, diving too deep can cause high pressure build-up in the ears, and water visibility is not always reliable. Due to the varied water life in the Caribbean, corals are quite a common feature. Some of these underwater formations are quite sharp and people tend to cut themselves on their limbs, so avoid direct contact with corals. Some species of sea urchins are also poisonous and certain eels tend to bite. On the positive side, with a little prudence these dangers are easily avoided.
There are many shops that sell diving gear along with snorkeling equipment. They also provide guides for Caribbean snorkeling.

Abir Roychowdhury asked:


Exploring the world under the sea is always fascinating. But to move freely underwater is not so easy as to move on the land. To be alive under water one has to carry a tank full of oxygen as breathing is not possible under water for human being. Beside that the tremendous pressure and different temperature of the water in deeper are much more different from the land.

For Scuba (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving the divers, boaters, sailors, swimmers, Water Adventurers, surface-water sports persons often use these things besides the full tank of oxygen:

1. MASK

2. FINS

3. SNORKLE

4. DRY SUIT and so many things.

Maintaining body temperature is one of the biggest problems for the divers. Dry suit is a kind of apparel, which gives the wearer protection from the water to his skin. Dry suits are used to prevent the water entering. Drysuits are used where the temperature of the water is between –20c to 150c.

There are three types of dry suits:

1. Membrane dry suits

2. Neoprene dry suits

3. Hybrid dry suits

1. Membrane drysuits - are mainly built of thin materials of vulcanized rubber or a compound of nylon and butyl rubber. These types of dry suits do not give any real thermal protection in colder water. And these dry suits do not stretch, and needed to be oversized to the joints to give the wearer flexibility at the time of movements. Sailors and boaters who are likely to be out of water prefer these membrane dry suits. Membrane dry suits are easy to wear and put off. Membrane drysuits are mostly used in the spring.

2. Neoprene drysuits - offer the thermal protection in the colder water, keep the buoyancy. Neoprene is thermal insulating material, made of heavy-duty fabric and that fabric is coated with rubber or Polyvinyl chloride better known as venyl. The neoprene dry suits are considered better in comparison to membrane dry suits. Neoprene has some better properties, which make this more useful, chemical-resistant, more stretchable buoyant and waterproof. Neoprene drysuits give greater thermal protection even if there is a leak. Neoprene drysuits are mostly used for water surface sports and in the cold water.

3. Hybrid drysuits - are made by the combination of the membrane material and neoprene material. In hybrid dry suits, the upper part of the suits is made of membrane material and the lower part starting from the waist is made of Neoprene materials. So that the tight fitting lower part of the dry suits gives the comfort to the wearers to kick the water to move a distance when they are swimming. And the loose upper part of the dry suits lets the wearer to free movement of their arms. Hybrid drysuits are mostly used for water surface sports and in the cold water and where the divers are going deeper.

Modern drysuits are having a waterproof zippers & hydro gloves. The zippers are mostly located across the shoulder lines or in the front of the torso, to wear the dry suits easily. Drysuits may have the hydrogloves, permanently attached to the drysuits or with attachment rings. Modern drysuits have the air inflation valve, which empowers the diver to control the buoyancy of the suit by injecting air from the diving regulator to get rid of squeeze under deep water. A drysuit is worn over an insulating undersuit.

A modern drysuit has an air ventilation valve, which allows the diver to release the higher-pressure air from the suit when they are coming out of the water. Ventilator valves may be automatic or manual. It is used as the pressure relief valves. Most of the automatic ventilators are located at the shoulder of the dry suits and the manual ventilators are located at the wrist.

A modern version of the two-piece drysuit is manufactured at Customworks at Idaho. These two-piece drysuits give all sorts of comfort to the divers, boaters, swimmers, sailors, cave divers and the water adventurers. They are making the drysuits considering the needs of its users.

Elizabeth Miller asked:


At the southern-most tip of the USA is beautiful San Diego, California — my home town and a playground for every water sport from skiing, sailing and surfing to fishing, snorkeling and scuba diving.
As a scuba diver you’ll find an exciting variety of marine life in Wreck Alley, in various kelp forests and in La Jolla’s massive underwater park.
The park combines La Jolla Submarine Canyon and Scripps Canyon, an underwater treasure of marine life including some of the more bizarre creatures among us.
The valley of this huge canyon system is about 1600 feet down. Its steep walls rise into two branches just made for convenient scuba diving access from the beach at either the La Jolla Cove or La Jolla Shores.
At the La Jolla Shores side you can start at the foot of Valicitos Street and swim to the buoys that mark the canyon’s upper reaches. Better be pretty skilled at swimming in surf. Otherwise, take a scuba diving charter boat out of Mission Bay.
By the time you’ve descended to about 30 feet you’ll be at the Scripps Canyon rim and its precipitous, narrow walls that plunge ever deeper toward the abyss. Be very careful here because the dropoff is nearly vertical at some points, often involving overhanging walls.
Visibility is good but variable due to upwellings and occasional strong currents. Winter water temperature is in the 50s; summer water gets up to the high 60s and sometimes low 70s.
Scuba divers and scientists alike have made the La Jolla and Scripps Canyons one of the most-studied undersea environments in the world. You can see the prestigious Scripps Institution of Oceanography and pier from any point along the La Jolla coastline. La Jolla Canyon’s fan valley was the site of the world’s first deep oceanic drillings, where core samples were retrieved from thousands of feet below the sea floor in 1961.
15 minutes south of La Jolla is Wreck Alley, about a mile off Mission Beach. Here you can explore artificial reefs created by eight sunken ships and a couple of unlikely structures that got there by both accident and intent.
The latest addition is the 366-foot Canadian destroyer Yukon, which was intentionally sunk here in about 100 feet of water during the year 2000. The Yukon still has years to go before it can compete with its older companions as a showpiece of densely populated cover.
The Ruby E, a 170-foot Coast Guard cutter resting in about 70 feet of water, was covered bow to stern with brilliantly colored Corynactis Californica anemones only a few years ago. But being one of the most beautiful sights for scuba divers’ eyes brought so much scuba diving traffic that some of the life has disappeared. Yet you can still drift through the wheelhouse and be absolutely dazzled by thick growths in a stunning array of colors. Be sure to bring a light.
Then there’s the kelp cutter Del Rey and several smaller wrecks, all with much more growth than the others because of lighter scuba diving traffic.
Now if you want to feel like you’re on an underwater highway, be sure to visit the Ingraham Street Bridge at about 60 feet down. It was demolished and dumped here in the ’50s or ’60s to make way for a new bridge in Mission Bay Aquatic Park. Now with some 50 years of cover it has become more like a natural reef with abundant growths of kelp, fans and algae, great colonies of filter feeders and all the marine life that comes to nibble.
Finally, there’s NOSC Tower, thanks to a 20-foot wave that dealt a fatal blow in the dark of one 1988 winter night. For three decades the NOSC Tower had served as a research platform off Mission Beach for the Naval Electronics Lab and the Naval Ocean Systems Center. Now it’s a twisted mass of steel covered with anemones, mussels and star for fabulous scuba diving in a world of stunning color. Bring a light for the show and a sharp knife for the fishing line and rope that you’re likely to find.
Bring your camera too, of course, for a great photography dive. Visibility averages 15-25 feet and by the way, hunting is not wanted here.
You can reach this great scuba location on such Mission Bay charter boats as Blue Escape (619-223-3483), Dive Connection (619-523-9282) and DiveQuest (800-303-3483).

Clare Hudson asked:


Within a decade, technical diving has moved from being the preserve of extremists to becoming a main stream, yet specialized, field. The rationale behind technical diving has been reached only after passing through a series of challenges and scrutiny in the past. In the late 1980s the International Association of Nitrox Technical Divers became the first specialized technical training centre, marking a revolution in diving. For the recreational Scuba diver, the diving depth limit is 40m and the diver should surface directly in up an unrestricted course. However, technical divers enjoy unlimited diving depth and the diver may need to resurface along a more restricted route such as in technical cave diving. Wreck diving also challenges the diver’s ability to cope with unstable conditions and the maze-like corridors in a wreck. After a deep dive, the diver’s body has absorbed a large amount of inert gas (mainly nitrogen). There is a life-threatening danger in surfacing without following a proper decompression process during the ascent.

Technical diving is a relatively risky activity; therefore, the training course follows stricter rules when admitting students. The instructor has the right to refuse non-suitable candidates onto courses such as technical cave diving and re-breather diving. Generally, students participating in basic technical diving courses should have at least two to three years of diving experience, perhaps even as certified recreational diving instructors.

The main difference between technical divers and recreational divers is not their experience or courage, but their mind set. Recreational divers are happy to swim over coral and fish, while technical divers are eager to test their limits. At a depth of 300 feet, the diver’s personality, clear mind and technique are under massive stress. Even a minor mistake can lead to uncontrolled results in this environment. Therefore, psychological fitness is even more important than physical fitness for a technical diver.

How should you choose a technical diving training agent? There are about five international training centres in Hong Kong, including the founding agent IANTD and PADI. Several points should be considered when selecting a training centre: equipment availability and standard, insistence on reasonable and correct training procedures, the experience of the technical diving instructors, and the opinions of ex-students. Though cost could be another point to consider, the difference of a hundred or a thousand dollars is meaningless compared with the value of your life.

The course structure of a technical diving course is similar to a recreational one in that everyone starts from a basic level, even if you are a qualified instructor or experienced diver. The technical deep dive course comprises three different levels under the IANTD and PADI systems. The basic course is named Advanced Nitrox Diver (IANTD) or Apprentice Tech Deep Diver (PADI). It teaches the student the benefits, hazards and proper procedures to dive to a 45m depth using high content oxygen for rapid decompression. This is deeper than the recreational diver’s limit. It is important to strictly follow the time and safety stops procedures for surfacing, otherwise decompression sickness (the Bends) could result. If a diver spends 30mins at a depth of 45m, they will need an extra 40minutes for decompression. After finishing the basic course, the student can move on to the Technical Nitrox Diver (IANTD) or Tec-Deep Diver (PADI). In this course, the student dives as deep as 55 meters with two oxygen-rich tanks (one is pure oxygen) for decompression. The 30-minute deep dive practice at 55m will necessitate another 50 mins for decompression. Apart from the deep dive practice, the student thoroughly studies the high pressure impact on the diver and psychological changes and works on improving posture and buoyancy control technique.

The final course is Trimix Diver. The diver uses a combination of low oxygen, low nitrogen and high helium gas mixtures for an 80m dive. This gas mix is essential for such a deep dive as ordinary pressurized air places negative impacts on the diver’s body at depths of more than 55m. The 21% in air after 55m depth will cause the diver to conrulse and even lose consciousness - this is oxygen toxcity. Inappropriate usage of the trimix gases, however, will also cause problems; therefore, specialized training is a must.

All the technical diving courses include lectures, pool work and deep water practice. The ratio of instructor to student is much lower than in recreational diving courses in which one instructor handles 3 to 4 students and the ratio is even stricter for certain courses, to account for the more complicated nature of the course.

Technical Diving is still a risky activity, the technique and experience learnt from technical diving can feed back into recreational diving to improve the safety standard for the whole diving industry.