Author: John

A team of Australian scientists recently discovered the widest coral in the Great Barrier Reef. The specimen, which belongs to the genus Porites, is also one of the largest and oldest coral in the reef system, measuring 34 feet (10.4 meters) in width and 17.4 feet (5.3 m) in height and thought to be between 421 and 438 years old.

A newly created Marine Protected Area has opened its doors waters to divers, offering a collection of 93 beautifully sculpted artworks representing humans, trees, and other elements of nature. The underwater museum is known as MUSAN (short for the Museum of Underwater Sculpture of Ayia Napa) and is located just off Pernera Beach in Ayia Napa.

No less than 40 shipwrecks dating back to World War II were discovered off the small island of Lampedusa, Sicily. The wrecks are located 20 to 100 nautical miles off the coast and lie on the sea bottom at 30 to 140 meters and have sunk during the “Battle of the Mediterranean.” Most of these ships are merchant vessels that used to carry cargoes of war supplies, including cannons, bombs, and tanks.

The Egyptian-French archaeological mission of the European Institute of Underwater Archeology (IEASM), working in Alexandria has recently discovered a 2000-year-old warship in the sunken city of Thônis-Heracleion, ancient Egypt’s gateway to the Mediterranean. The remains are located in Abu Qir Bay, about two and a half kilometers off the coast.

It’s been less than a year since we announced the opening of the world’s deepest pool in Mszczonó, Poland, and the title has already been claimed by something even more spectacular – the Deep Dive Dubai.

Lake Michigan is the second-largest of the five Great Lakes of North America. Spanning over an area of 22,406 square miles, this large body of water holds an estimate of 1,500 shipwrecks, sprawled across its sandy bottom. Many of these wrecks date back to the 1800s and thanks to the lake’s cold, pristine water, they are essentially intact. Even small items like cutlery and ornaments remain in their original position, unharmed.

Despite not having lungs, sharks do have to breathe to survive. They rely on the oxygen from the water, which they harvest as much as they can. It all lies in their gills. Sharks use their gills to extract oxygen from the surrounding water and to get rid of the carbon dioxide in their bodies.

One of the most famous rock formations in the world, and an iconic dive site for divers in search of the big stuff, has recently collapsed, only two pillars remaining. The unfortunate event took place in the morning of May 17, 2021. Divers onboard the Galápagos Aggressor III got to witness this historical event, but as of now, there’s no information on the effects of the collapse on the dive site.

South African nature documentary, ‘My Octopus Teacher’ has won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature at the 93^rd Academy Awards, an event that honored the best films of 2020 and early 2021.

The Netflix documentary follows the heartwarming story of a diver – filmmaker and naturalist Craig Foster –  who befriends a friendly octopus in the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean in False Bay, South Africa. It is a superb example of beautiful cinematography and offers a unique view of how life is like for the octopuses, these aquatic masters of camouflage.

More than 76 years ago, a U.S. Navy destroyer was sunk while attempting to protect an American landing force in the Philippines from multiple Japanese warships during the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The vessel remained undisturbed on the seabed in the Pacific Ocean since 1944 and has only recently been mapped and filmed.