In the Depths of Aquarius

Gautam Naik -

Anchored 60 Feet Under the Sea, Lab Provides Snug Vantage Point for 'Aquanauts'.

Mark Hay checked his scuba gear one last time, then stepped off a boat and dived toward the seafloor.

His destination was Aquarius, the only manned underwater lab in operation in the world. The metal structure—about the size of a school bus—is anchored 60 feet beneath the surface near a flourishing coral reef a few miles off Key Largo.

Dr. Hay has been on a quest to find out if there is any tangible benefit to preserving a large number of species from extinction, and he has done key aspects of his research during stays here at Aquarius.

Marine researchers like Dr. Hay are drawn to Aquarius because they can conduct experiments on the deep reef for nine hours each day or night without fear of getting the bends—a potentially dangerous buildup of nitrogen in the blood that forces divers to limit the length of a dive.

Plus, the views aren't bad. On a recent visit, yellow damselfish peered through a porthole and a mean-mouthed barracuda lurked nearby. "You're in this reverse aquarium—an air bubble with windows," said Saul Rosser, operations director of Aquarius.But the scuba-dive commute isn't the only reason it can be a tricky place to work. Scientists—or "aquanauts"—stay for 10 days at a time, living, eating and sleeping in the confined habitat. The high-pressure atmosphere in Aquarius means soda cans brought down barely fizz when opened. But food cans get squeezed and distorted. A person's voice also tends to have a different timbre. Whistling is hard.

At the end of each mission, the interior pressure is slowly reduced until it becomes the same as that on the surface. Aquanauts can then safely return to the surface without fear of the bends.

The lab has six bunks and a shower, and the food is of the astronaut variety. The "outhouse" toilet attached to the lab isn't fun. For starters, you have to swim to it, even if in the dark. A person must stand in the gazebo-like structure, breathing from an air pocket in the upper section of the structure. Waste disappears into the sea.

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Photo Mark Hay

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