NEWS

Top photographers back Bite-Back calendar

Well-known underwater photographers including Alex Mustard, David Doubilet, Doug Perrine and Amos Nachoum have each donated an image and commentary to the 2019 calendar from UK charity Bite-Back Shark & Marine Conservation. Read more...

UK diver death-toll rose in 2018

Nineteen scuba divers died in the UK in the year to September, the highest death toll for 14 years, according to the latest annual Diving Incident Report from the British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC). Read more...

In the thick of the action

There’s a new player in divers’ happy hunting ground of the eastern Pacific, now that Aggressor Adventures has added a 24th dive-yacht to its roster – in the shape of the 41m Socorro Aggressor. Read more...

Shark-fin convictions send strong warning

The owner, captain and agent of a Malaysian-flagged fishing vessel have each been sentenced to 20 years in prison for shark-finning in the waters of diving destination Tanzania. Read more...

Indian minesweeper to be first artificial reef

The popularity of scuba diving has grown rapidly in India in recent years alongside an increase in outward tourism, the country itself having few recognised dive-sites other than around its distant Andaman Islands. Read more...

UK’s 2018 freediving champions named

Competitive freediving newcomer David Mellor has been named alongside the more experienced Georgina Miller as 2018 UK national champions. Read more...

PADI and DAN offer pro cover in Europe

Professional liability insurance is being offered at preferential rates to PADI instructors, dive guides and dive masters in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, following a tie-up between PADI EMEA and safety organisation Divers Alert Network (DAN) Europe. Read more...

Truk diving never stops

After many years of dive cruising in Micronesia, the liveaboard Thorfinn has now adopted a system of “non-stop diving” over Truk’s sunken battle fleet. Read more...

Join ghost-net divers at Winter Warmer

An invitation has gone out to scuba divers who might be considering getting involved in underwater operations to remove ghost-fishing gear in the UK but are unsure how to set about it. Read more...

Otter’s John Womack Sr passes away

Leading light of the UK dive industry John Womack Senior of long-established manufacturer Otter Drysuits has died, following a long illness. Read more...

Panicking diver ascended feet-first

A combination of circumstances including a mismatched valve and hose led to an uncontrolled feet-first ascent and the death of a newly qualified scuba diver off Scotland's north-east coast four years ago. Read more...

Brothers diving halted while sharks checked out

Diving safaris to the Brother Islands in the Red Sea have been prohibited by Egyptian authorities from 7 December until the start of the New Year. Read more...

Pick your favourite wildlife photo

Seven underwater images are among a shortlist of 25 photographs as London's Natural History Museum (NHM) invites the public to have their say in that annual continuation of its Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, the People’s Choice Award. Read more...

Festival celebrates Maldives manta hotspot

The first Baa Atoll Manta Festival has been held in the Maldives, aimed at involving the local community and especially its younger people in appreciating and protecting the famed UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Read more...

Divers map historic North Carolina wrecks

A wreck-site can be visited regularly by scuba divers yet still warrant proper archaeological investigation, says the USA’s National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Read more...

Wrecks show off new sonar technology

Four historic wrecks off Rhode Island on the USA’s north-east coast have been used to test new technology that is said to render seabed and wreck images in 30 times more detail than conventional sonar scanning. Read more...

Dorset club rewarded for tank survey

An archaeological survey of Poole Bay’s Valentine tank wrecks by Purbeck Sub Aqua Club has won it recognition – in the form of the Nautical Archaeology Society’s 2018 Adopt a Wreck Award. Read more...

Good news for crabs – but not for us

It’s well-known that microplastics contaminate marine eco-systems, but while much research has been devoted to assessing the extent of the damage, little has been done until now on the effects on predator-prey interactions. Read more...

Bubble-free on Bloody Bay Wall

The depths of the seemingly bottomless Bloody Bay Wall in in the Cayman Islands will be a special attraction when Grand Cayman-based dive-centre Divetech holds its rebreather event Innerspace 2019. Read more...

Sealife Collection wants your photos

Hoping that underwater photographers will be moved to contribute their images to form the ultimate marine-life database is a new Spanish-based online platform called the Sealife Collection. Read more...

1927 Chevy found on oddly angled wreck

It’s unusual to find an intact car on an ageing wreck, but in Canada’s Lake Huron scuba divers have located a 90-year-old vessel complete with a 1927 Chevrolet coupe belonging to one of the passengers. Read more...

Diver’s beer-bottle: open-and-shut case

One of the oldest intact bottles of British beer was presented to a Glasgow brewery for display recently by the scuba diver who found it. Read more...

Branson & Cousteau to explore Blue Hole live

A two-hour live TV programme from one of the world’s largest submerged sinkholes is to be broadcast by Discovery Channel at the start of December. Read more...

‘Phase analysis’ offers new hope for coral

Identifying five distinct phases of coral-reef decline in place of the standard “healthy, bleached or dead” analysis could be the key to saving threatened habitats. Read more...

More good news for Deptherapy

Diver and Deptherapy Chairman Dr Richard Cullen has seen his work recognised in the form of the Veterans’ Foundation Award at the Heropreneurs Awards – an honour that comes with a £10,000 donation for the scuba-rehabilitation charity he helped to found. Read more...