Scuba diving in Greece: Samothraki July 13, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : OceanDiving, Travel , 1 comment so far
I have never really considered the Aegean Sea as a place to go scuba diving. I guess we are bombarded with so much information about the Red Sea, Maldives, and places like that rather than some of the lesser known areas of the world. As Greece has recently changed its law to make it easier for scuba divers, then I think we might be hearing more about the diving opportunities in and around Greece.
Dimitris Kotsifakis visited Samothraki last year, which is in the northeastern part of the Aegean Sea, and wrote a trip report. In his words ‘Samothraki is an island blessed with marvelous natural beauty, luxuriant vegetation mixed with waterfalls, unique beaches, ancient monuments, picturesque villages and most of all, openhearted people that are always willing to welcome you.’ Sounds very cool.
(more…)
Cochran Computers “Authorized for Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Operations” July 13, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Equipment, News , add a comment
I saw this announcement today that the US Navy have authorised two computers from the Cochran range suitable for use in their diving operations. Although they look a little bland and somewhat ugly for consumer use, they have been field tested by the US Navy so I guess they can stand up to quite a bit of abuse. This from the press release;
Cochran Undersea Technology revealed today that dive computers designed and manufactured by Cochran have been added to the US Navy’s ANU (Authorized for Navy Use) equipment list. The Cochran Navy Dive Computers, NSW II and NSW III, received the “Authorized for Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Operations” ratings after extensive laboratory and years of field testing by the US Navy.
(more…)
Still no sign of missing scuba diver July 13, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Accidents , 1 comment so farI saw this report in Divester regarding Ashley maudlin, who disappeared after beginning a dive at 3pm on Monday, and not returning. She was diving about 14 miles west of New Port Richey near an artificial reef, with what reports say was a 40 minutes supply of air.
Since then the the Coast Guard and dive crews from three other agencies have scoured more than 250 square miles looking for Ashley, without success. The search efforts have been hampered by strong storms and even water spouts, and rescuers say that time is running out if Ashley is to be found alive.
(more…)
Research suggests Maximum Ascent Rate should be 9 m per min July 13, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Decompression , add a commentResearchers are recommending that the maximum ascent rate be reduced to 9 mtrs per minutes after a study which examined brain lesions in scuba divers. There theory is that ascent rates above that rate are releated to lesions they found in the nervous system.
Of course, we should already be ascending at speeds below 9 mtrs per min, and we should slow this ascent rate the nearer we get to the surface. This post at divester is a reminder why.
Here’s some info from the Abstract;
(more…)
Heart attack killed rebreather diver, coroner says July 12, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Accidents, Rebreathers , add a commentDivester reported back in August 2005 that Gerry Tychansky, who had been scuba diving whilst assisting the making of a low budget horror movie, Marina Monster, died during the shoot. The result of the investigation into how Gerry died has been published by the coroner, who has concluded it was a heart attack.
Terry was diving with a rebreather, and it seems that many fatalities associated with rebreathers conclude with a heart attack verdict, but this does not seem to mirror fatality verdicts whilst scuba diving, which are usually confirmed as death by drowning. Gerry was only 43 years old. This from the Hamilton Spectator;
(more…)
Matt Johnston continues to live his dream July 12, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : News , add a commentI have previously mentioned Matt Johnstons quest to become a scuba diver, despite the fact that he is a ventilator dependent quadriplegic, which means the most simple tasks are major events for Matt.
Recently, Willy at Divester reported that Matt had received his SDI Scubility qualification card and since then he has continued to move forward with his dream of diving in the sea.
(more…)
