3 ms·

I believe buoyant wetsuits are a safety feature - if you run into issues, you can release your weight and float to the surface.

• RealityVoid 10y ago
  But the buoyancy variation with depth is pretty dangerous, I think. I do not know if that variation is truly the fault of the suit or the fleshy diver.
  • mahyarm 10y ago
    Neoprene compresses at pressure, which means it's less buoyant at lower depths.
    • RealityVoid 10y ago
      Yes, I agree, that is what I was saying also. I just wonder if the human body doesn't also change buoyancy with depth, making neoprene density variation pretty negligible by comparison.
      • mahyarm 10y ago
        From what I understand, no. The only thing that compresses is the air inside your lungs, but you keep on breathing in & out pressure compensated air, so the buoyancy difference doesn't change as you go down. Neoprene compression has a fairly large effect, pounds worth of buoyancy. Look at this spreadsheet for example, at depth you lose 11.6 pounds of buoyancy due to the neoprene compressing: https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/the-ultimate-wing-lift-calculator.158370/page-11#post-7032051 https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/the-ultimate-wi...