DIVER NEWS
divErNEt.com 15 divEr
JAY WOLFE 5 out of 5 stars / 16 reviews
PADI Open Water
Scuba Instructor,
Green Flash Dive
Services, Saipan,
Northern Mariana
Islands“My first time in
Saipan and eager to
dive, I went with Jay
and really enjoyed
it. He knows the site,
pays attention to
you and can adapt the dive-profile based on your
needs or skills.” Pierre Sapinault“I had a great experience diving with Jay. I came
for two or three dives but couldn’t stop, and we did
nine, including a night dive. He’s an experienced
diver, a skilled instructor, an excellent buddy and
a righteous egg. Diving with Jay is highly
recommended!“ Valentina“He’s the best dive leader, bar none. I never felt
out of my depth because he really helped take the
pressure off. Seriously, Jay was attentive and
professional throughout our dives.” JeremyNILS DRAEGER5 out of 5 stars / 15 reviews
PADI Master Scuba
Diver Trainer,
Action-Sport
7oceans, Hamburg,
Germany“My son and
I did the Rescue
Diver course. Nils
impressed with
his professional
knowledge and high
social competence.
His positive attitude and joy in imparting
knowledge contributed significantly to the relaxed
atmosphere and success of the course.” Thilo“I did more than one course with Nils and hope to
do more in future. He is super-helpful, competent
and thorough on courses but also on fun dives, with
great tips on how to improve yourself and your kit.
With Nils you’re in good hands!” Monika“What distinguishes a good from atopinstructor?
You learn a lot with both, but with Nils, a real ace,
you also have fun! Improvements are discussed not
with a raised finger but with empathy, creating
a climate of well-being.” Dr Reimar Vogtrateyourdive.comadopts a “Trip Advisor” hotel-booking
approach so that, besides diver ratings, users can compare prices
and offers from dive pros and centres in particular regions.DIVE PROS of the MONTH
based on customer reviews atrateyourdive.comT
HE FOURTH OF Victor Vescovo’s Five Deeps
Expedition submersible missions has resulted
in the US explorer becoming the deepest
diver in history.
Piloting his submersible Limiting Factor,built by
Triton Submarines, he reached a maximum depth of
10,928m at Challenger Deep in the Pacific Ocean’s
Mariana Trench.
This solo dive beat by just 16m the record set
almost 60 years ago by the Trieste bathyscaph,
piloted by Don Walsh and Jacques Piccard in 1960.
Walsh was aboard the mothership DSSV Pressure
Dropto witness the series of deep dives. “This was a
demonstration of system reliability and operational
efficiency never seen before in exploration of the
oceans’ deepest places,” he commented afterwards.
James Cameron made the first solodive to the
Mariana Trench seabed in Deepsea Challengerin
2012, though he was a few metres short of Trieste’s
maximum depth. The Triesteand Deepsea Challenger
missions were both restricted to single attempts,
but the Limiting Factor made five dives between 28
April and 5 May, including one in the Sirena Deep.
T
HE DEEPEST DIVEwas the first of two solo
dives by Vescovo. It involved a four-hour
exploration of a relatively flat part of Challenger
Deep known as the Eastern Pool, and marked the
longest period ever spent at the bottom of the
ocean by an individual.
The other three dives included both a pilot and a
scientific specialist. The third dive turned out to be
the deepest marine-salvage operation ever
attempted. A scientific lander had become stuck on
the seabed on the previous dive, and was recovered.
The scientific team identified at least three new
species of marine animal during the dives, including
a type of long-legged crustacean.
Less welcome was the recording of marine
pollution in one of the world’s most inaccessible
places – sweet wrappers and a plastic bag.
The descents and ascents averaged 3.5 hours
each way, with missions lasting on average from
11-12 hours, including submersible launch and
recovery times. The Limiting Factor is designed to
support two people for up to four days.
Another new record was set when pilot John
Ramsay, the submersible’s principal structural
designer, became the first British citizen to descend
to the bottom of Challenger Deep.
The Five Deeps Expedition aims to reach the
deepest known points in all five oceans. The
Atlantic, Southern, Indian and now Pacific Oceans
have been covered by Vescovo and his team over
the past four months, with only the Arctic now
remaining. Atlantic Productions is filming a five-part
Discovery Channel documentary on the mission,
due to be broadcast later this year.
“It is almost indescribable how excited all of us
are about achieving what we just did,” said Vescovo
following the Mariana Trench dives. “We feel like we
have just created, validated and opened a powerful
door to discover and visit any place, any time, in the
ocean – which is 90% unexplored.”
With his dives Vescovo, who is 53 and a private
equity investor, also became the first person to have
both reached the summit of Mt Everest and been to
the ocean’s deepest-known point, as well as having
skied to both the North and South Poles – his
version of visiting “the four corners of the Earth”.
He has also climbed the highest peak on every
continent – “the Seven Summits” – and hopes with
the final dive of the Five Deeps Expedition at Molloy
Deep in late August to complete his set of ocean
descents in the Arctic.
Before that, the next planned dive is at Horizon
Deep in the Pacific’s Tonga Trench – which could
prove even deeper than the Mariana Trench. Pictured: Vescovo pilots
Limiting Factoron the
seabed. Below: Don Walsh,
world’s deepest diver in
1960, congratulates
Vescovo on his record-
breaking descent.Vescovo becomes the
deepest diver by 16m
ATLANTIC PRODUCTIONS / DISCOVERY CHANNELREEVE JOLIFFE