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> The gurgle of scuba equipment, submarines and robots that are normally used to study marine life tend to spook whales. To avoid scaring them, the Dare Win tea

> The gurgle of scuba equipment, submarines and robots that are normally used to study marine life tend to spook whales. To avoid scaring them, the Dare Win team have abandoned much of this technology and use freediving techniques instead, using only a mask, flippers, and a single breath of air to dive dozens of feet deep into the ocean. SCUBA doesnt make any more noise than freediving other than the bubbles, which can be solved by using (somewhat expensive) rebreathers [1][2] [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebreather http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebreather [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebreather_diving#Other_advantages http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebreather_diving#Other_advanta...

aetherson 12y ago
When I scuba-dive, there is a noticeable sound of, I guess, a valve opening and air at some pressure flowing through said valve. The Darth Vader breath sound. It's pretty loud in the confines of my head, though I can't say how loud it would be to marine animals around me.
- leeoniya 12y ago
  yeah you're right, but i suspect that sound is a couple orders of magnitude quieter since it isnt a rapid expansion of air directly into the water. i bet regulators exist that cut even that sound down significantly.
  - scottm01 12y ago
    Open circuit scuba gear is noisy because you are regularly exhaling gas. The regulator makes a little bit of noise, but the exhalation is generally what spooks animals. Lacking the need to exhale/vent gas (very often), Closed circuit rebreathers are extremely quiet. Some serious underwater photographers moved from the much cheaper (and arguably much safer) open circuit setups to rebreathers entirely to avoid spooking subjects. A rebreather probably can't quite compete with a freediver for silence and agility, though would certainly have a lot more time underwater to make up for it. At least some organized whale shark dives are freedive-only, probably partly to protect the animals and partly due to the time and noise required to put scuba divers into the water.
soci 12y ago
Scuba diving does make A LOT of noise indeed. When I freedive I can hear scubadivers by their loud sound from far away; even when I cannot see them underwater nor their boats on the surface. Then, I change location because I know I won't be able to catch any fish where they are. Even the slightest noise can scare fish, not to say marine mammals like whales. Of course I'm talking of those in open waters, not in marine reserves where they are used to humans. I've been swimming with dolphins in the Mediterranean but they were very shy. Friends of mine have been freediving with common rorquals (2nd largest whale in the world, 75Ton) also in the Med. Their pictures which I'm no sure I'm allowed to share are just breathtaking. We, the human beings are so small compared to whales! Also, a friend of mine has a rebreather. It's quite an expensive equipment and needs a special training in order to be used. They are quite complex too compared to regular scuba. Besides making no bubbles, rebreathers allow longer dive times. It's the best way to approach marine life without scaring all animals around besides freediving.
- mironathetin 12y ago
  Is it true, that a freediver can stay under water for 4 minutes? I recently held my breath for as long as I could and measured 4 minutes (I am a trained swimmer). But without moving at all and the last minute tends to be - painfull :o) Are there techniques, or is it just training?
  - lutusp 12y ago
    > Is it true, that a freediver can stay under water for 4 minutes? Yes. It's true. This doesn't mean anyone can do it. > Are there techniques, or is it just training? Yes to both. One technique is to over-oxygenate yourself before diving. Another is to minimize oxygen use while on the dive, easier said than done, but possible. And four minutes isn't all that special: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2154442/Free-diver-breaks-world-record-holding-breath-underwater-22-22-minutes.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2154442/Free-diver-b...
    - mironathetin 12y ago
      Impressive. 20 minutes. Of course only 10 minutes without oxygen.

aetherson 12y ago

When I scuba-dive, there is a noticeable sound of, I guess, a valve opening and air at some pressure flowing through said valve. The Darth Vader breath sound. It's pretty loud in the confines of my head, though I can't say how loud it would be to marine animals around me.

leeoniya 12y ago
yeah you're right, but i suspect that sound is a couple orders of magnitude quieter since it isnt a rapid expansion of air directly into the water. i bet regulators exist that cut even that sound down significantly.
- scottm01 12y ago
  Open circuit scuba gear is noisy because you are regularly exhaling gas. The regulator makes a little bit of noise, but the exhalation is generally what spooks animals. Lacking the need to exhale/vent gas (very often), Closed circuit rebreathers are extremely quiet. Some serious underwater photographers moved from the much cheaper (and arguably much safer) open circuit setups to rebreathers entirely to avoid spooking subjects. A rebreather probably can't quite compete with a freediver for silence and agility, though would certainly have a lot more time underwater to make up for it. At least some organized whale shark dives are freedive-only, probably partly to protect the animals and partly due to the time and noise required to put scuba divers into the water.

soci 12y ago

Scuba diving does make A LOT of noise indeed. When I freedive I can hear scubadivers by their loud sound from far away; even when I cannot see them underwater nor their boats on the surface. Then, I change location because I know I won't be able to catch any fish where they are. Even the slightest noise can scare fish, not to say marine mammals like whales. Of course I'm talking of those in open waters, not in marine reserves where they are used to humans. I've been swimming with dolphins in the Mediterranean but they were very shy. Friends of mine have been freediving with common rorquals (2nd largest whale in the world, 75Ton) also in the Med. Their pictures which I'm no sure I'm allowed to share are just breathtaking. We, the human beings are so small compared to whales! Also, a friend of mine has a rebreather. It's quite an expensive equipment and needs a special training in order to be used. They are quite complex too compared to regular scuba. Besides making no bubbles, rebreathers allow longer dive times. It's the best way to approach marine life without scaring all animals around besides freediving.

mironathetin 12y ago
Is it true, that a freediver can stay under water for 4 minutes? I recently held my breath for as long as I could and measured 4 minutes (I am a trained swimmer). But without moving at all and the last minute tends to be - painfull :o) Are there techniques, or is it just training?
- lutusp 12y ago
  > Is it true, that a freediver can stay under water for 4 minutes? Yes. It's true. This doesn't mean anyone can do it. > Are there techniques, or is it just training? Yes to both. One technique is to over-oxygenate yourself before diving. Another is to minimize oxygen use while on the dive, easier said than done, but possible. And four minutes isn't all that special: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2154442/Free-diver-breaks-world-record-holding-breath-underwater-22-22-minutes.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2154442/Free-diver-b...
  - mironathetin 12y ago
    Impressive. 20 minutes. Of course only 10 minutes without oxygen.