Scuba Diving Gear

3 Responses to “Aqua Lung Diving”

1. Jeebus B., on September 16th, 2010 at 11:15 am Said:

   goofy way…

2. DA. Freiberg, on October 14th, 2010 at 9:07 am Said:

   I have now looked at the softcopy version of “Up through the Ice of the North Pole” by Comdr. Calvert, which doesn't seem to be available anywhere on the web – I'm not sure why the National Geographic hasn't put their archives on line, even if it would require a paid subscription.

   It contains a wealth of detail which deserves to be read and analyzed by WUWT readers. The file is embedded in their proprietary version of Adobe and I don't think it could be separated. However, I could print it out and rescan it to create a readable file. Could this then be posted at WUWT? Would this be allowed by copyright?

   Some brief observations about the article:
   1. There are three pictures in the article taken during the March 17 surfacing, all in color. The OSU_35_5_4 picture is a fuzzy b/w reproduction of the one in the article or was possibly taken with a different camera. In the article, the “torch” is clearly visible in one individual's hand. Comdr. Calvert said that the torches were “the same type used by truckers”. Although the actual ceremony picture is somewhat dark, the other pictures are much lighter.

   2. The newsreel footage was shot March 24 and was not shot at the Pole but from somewhere in the ice pack. The voiceover doesn't specifically say that this is the Skate At the Pole, just that the Skate surfaced at the Pole. The stupid Navy should have realized that people in the next millenium would go over their every word and picture with a fine-tooth comb. And they thought all they had to worry about was the Soviets.

   3. The suppositions about putting out a photography party to film the surfacing are of course correct. Comdr. Calvert had tried to get footage at the spot where the first winter Artic surfacing occured, which was some distance from the Pole around March 13 or so, but the camera equipment froze.

   4. OSU_35_5_1 seems to match the color photography used in the article that was shot during the March trip.

   5. “Our fifth surfacing [occured between 20 March and 22 March] was noteworthy mainly for the fact that on the way up we saw a two foot puddle of open water, the first and last open water we saw on the entire cruise”.

   6. The caption on one picture says “'Security forbids disclosing the exact thickness [of the ice] that we penetrated', says the author” but the article contains numerous references to their development of the technique of looking for “skylights”, a stretch of thin ["first year"?] ice through which they surfaced, using their strengthened “sail” to break through.

   7. Comdr. Calvert's article covers both of Skate's trips to the Pole, the first surfacing in August 1958 and the second in March 1959. I believe that the August surfacing was in some ways, the more valuable for our study because it seems to be the first time we have a record of conditions at the Pole during the Artic summer. All previous expeditions had been overland and thus had to take place in late winter/early spring.

   8. During the first March surfacing he comments “Once up there we had a breathtaking sight. Contrasted with last summer's Artic world pale-blue melt ponds atop the ice floes, and almost black lakes of open water, this was a world of stark, frozen whiteness”.

   9. About the August 12, 1958 surfacing 40 miles from the pole (89' 20″N and 93' 00″ W) at “Polynya 2″ he states “No ship of any kind has ever been at the surface of the sea this far north…a thermometer…shows 30' F-still not cold”.

   10. During the March voyage, Comdr. Calvert had Aqua-Lung divers in the water, which “tested 30' above zero”.

   #8, #9, and #10 can help us put some of the AGW articles and AGW “dramatic actions” in perspective. The Guardian article was written in August, while Comdr. Calvert notes that the 1958 air temperature was 30' F, with ice floes and “black lakes of open water”.

   Lewis Gordon Pugh's website states: “On July 15, 2007, he became the first person to complete a long distance swim at the North Pole. While most people can’t imagine swimming in waters of minus 1.7°C (29°F), his swim is the most vivid illustration yet of just how far climate change has progressed.”

   However, Comdr. Calvert recorded water temperature of 30'F above zero in the WINTER, so Pugh's stunt is only indicative of his extremely short historical perspective.

   Could it be that the extremely recent development of the relative ease of attaining the Artic in the summertime has been used, deliberately or not, to slant “the Artic is melting” argument?

   What is the difference between Comdr. Calvert's description of an air temperature of -30' F on March 24, 1958 in the Artic ice pack and present day conditions on the same date?

   Regards,
   DA. Freiberg

3. clanlabcooker, on December 4th, 2011 at 6:40 am Said:

   depends on the depth of your dive, length of your dive, and the person diving. I'm sure that you can find proper mixes on the Internet.