diving
Diving most often refers to:
* Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water
* Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes
Diving or Dive may also refer to:
Sports
* Dive (American football), a ...
for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually when using
scuba equipment
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for " Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chri ...
. The term "recreational diving" may also be used in contradistinction to "
technical diving
Technical diving (also referred to as tec diving or tech diving) is scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually ...
", a more demanding aspect of recreational diving which requires more training and experience to develop the competence to reliably manage more complex equipment in the more hazardous conditions associated with the disciplines.
Breath-hold diving
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving is a form of underwater diving that relies on breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as scuba gear.
Besides the limits of breath-h ...
for recreation also fits into the broader scope of the term, but this article covers the commonly used meaning of ''scuba diving for recreational purposes, where the diver is not constrained from making a direct near-vertical ascent to the surface at any point during the dive'', and risk is considered low.
The equipment used for recreational diving is mostly
open circuit scuba
A scuba set, originally just scuba, is any breathing apparatus that is entirely carried by an underwater diver and provides the diver with breathing gas at the ambient pressure. ''Scuba'' is an anacronym for self-contained underwater breathing ...
, though semi closed and fully automated electronic closed circuit
rebreather
A rebreather is a breathing apparatus that absorbs the carbon dioxide of a user's breathing, exhaled breath to permit the rebreathing (recycling) of the substantially unused oxygen content, and unused inert content when present, of each breath. ...
s may be included in the scope of recreational diving. Risk is managed by training the diver in a range of standardised procedures and skills appropriate to the equipment the diver chooses to use and the environment in which the diver plans to dive. Further experience and development of skills by practice will improve the diver's ability to dive safely. Specialty training is made available by the recreational diver training industry and diving clubs to increase the range of environments and venues the diver can enjoy at an acceptable level of risk.
Reasons to dive and preferred diving activities may vary during the personal development of a recreational diver, and may depend on their
psychological
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between t ...
profile and their level of dedication to the activity. Most divers average less than eight dives per year, but some total several thousand dives over a few decades and continue diving into their 60s and 70s, occasionally older. Recreational divers may frequent local
dive site
Recreational dive sites are specific places that recreational scuba divers go to enjoy the underwater environment or for training purposes. They include technical diving sites beyond the range generally accepted for recreational diving. In this c ...
s or dive as tourists at more distant venues known for desirable
underwater environment
The underwater environment is the region below the surface of, and immersed in, liquid water in a natural or artificial feature (called a body of water), such as an ocean, sea, lake, pond, reservoir, river, canal, or aquifer. Some characterist ...
s. An
economically
Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...
significant diving tourism industry services recreational divers, providing equipment, training and diving experiences, generally by specialist providers known as
dive center
A dive center is the base location where recreational divers usually learn scuba diving or make guided dive trips at new locations. Many dive centers operate under the guidelines of ISO 24803, in which case the facilities must meet the ISO mi ...
s,
dive school
Recreational diver training is the process of developing knowledge and understanding of the basic principles, and the skills and procedures for the use of scuba equipment so that the diver is able to dive for recreational purposes with accep ...
jurisdiction
Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels.
Jur ...
s. Recreational diving may be industry regulated or regulated by law to some extent. The legal responsibility for recreational diving service providers is usually limited as far as possible by waivers which they require the customer to sign before engaging in any diving activity. The extent of responsibility of recreational buddy divers is unclear, but
buddy diving
Buddy diving is the use of the buddy system by scuba divers. It is a set of safety procedures intended to improve the chances of avoiding or surviving accidents in or under water by having divers dive in a group of two or sometimes three. When ...
is generally recommended by recreational diver training agencies as safer than
solo diving
Solo diving is the practice of self-sufficient underwater diving without a " dive buddy", particularly with reference to scuba diving, but the term is also applied to freediving. Professionally, solo diving has always been an option which depen ...
, and some service providers insist that customers dive in buddy pairs. The evidence supporting this policy is inconclusive.
Scope
The full scope of recreational diving includes breath-hold diving and surface supplied diving – particularly with lightweight semi-autonomous airline systems such as
snuba
Snuba is form of surface-supplied diving that uses an underwater breathing system developed by Snuba International.
The origin of the word "Snuba" may be a portmanteau of " snorkel" and "scuba", as it bridges the gap between the two. Alternati ...
– and
technical diving
Technical diving (also referred to as tec diving or tech diving) is scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually ...
(including
penetration diving
Underwater diving, as a human activity, is the practice of descending below the water's surface to interact with the environment. It is also often referred to as diving, an ambiguous term with several possible meanings, depending on contex ...
), as all of these are frequently done for recreational purposes, but common usage is mostly for open water scuba diving with limited decompression.
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chris ...
implies the use of an autonomous breathing gas supply carried by the diver, the self-contained underwater breathing apparatus which provides the name for this mode of diving. Scuba may be the simpler and more popular open circuit configuration or one of the more complex and expensive closed or semi-closed rebreather arrangements. Rebreathers used for recreational diving are generally designed to require a minimum task loading on the diver and as far as possible to fail safe and give the diver ample warning to
bail out to open circuit
Rebreather diving is underwater diving using diving rebreathers, a class of underwater breathing apparatus which recirculate the breathing gas exhaled by the diver after replacing the oxygen used and removing the carbon dioxide metabolic produc ...
and abort the dive.
Open water is the definitive environment for recreational diving, and in this context implies that there is no physical or physiological barrier to the diver concluding the dive at any time by a direct ascent to the surface, either vertically, or via a clearly visible route adequately illuminated by ambient light. Some organisations extend the scope of recreational diving to allow short decompression obligations which can be done without
gas switching
The practice of decompression by divers comprises the planning and monitoring of the profile indicated by the algorithms or tables of the chosen decompression model, to allow asymptomatic and harmless release of excess inert gases dissolved in ...
. Depth limitations are imposed by the certification agencies, and relate to the competency associated with the specific certification. Entry level divers may be restricted to a depth of , and more advanced divers to 30, 40, 50 or 60 m depending on the certification and agency. Junior divers may be restricted to shallower depths.
Recreational diving is generally limited to the use of air or a single
nitrox
Nitrox refers to any gas mixture composed (excepting trace gases) of nitrogen and oxygen. This includes atmospheric air, which is approximately 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% other gases, primarily argon. In the usual application, underwater ...
mixture with an
oxygen
Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements as wel ...
fraction not exceeding 40% for the planned dive, but this does not preclude constant oxygen partial pressure nitrox provided by electronically controlled closed circuit rebreathers like the Poseidon Mk6 or variable nitrox mixtures such as provided by the earlier semi-closed circuit
Dräger Ray
Dräger or Draeger may refer to
* Dräger (surname)
* Dräger (company)
Dräger is a German company based in Lübeck which makes breathing and protection equipment, gas detection and analysis systems, and noninvasive patient monitoring technolo ...
rebreather. Emergency gas supplies are either by sharing with a dive buddy or from a
bailout cylinder
A bailout bottle (BoB) or, more formally, bailout cylinder is a scuba cylinder carried by an underwater diver for use as an emergency supply of breathing gas in the event of a primary gas supply failure. A bailout cylinder may be carried by a scu ...
for open circuit diving, and by bailout to open circuit for rebreather diving.
Most recreational diving officially applies the
buddy system
The buddy system is a procedure in which two individuals, the "buddies", operate together as a single unit so that they are able to monitor and help each other.
As per Merriam-Webster, the first known use of the phrase "buddy system" goes as far ...
, but in reality there are a significant proportion of dives which are either effectively solo dives or where larger groups of nominally paired divers follow a
dive leader
Dive leader is the title of an internationally recognised recreational diving certification. The training standard describes the minimum requirements for dive leader training and certification for recreational scuba divers in international standar ...
and may be escorted by another dive leader.
Reasons to dive
The reasons to dive for recreational purposes are many and varied, and many divers will go through stages when their personal reasons for diving change, as the initial novelty of the alien environment becomes familiar and skills develop to the point where the diver is able to pay more attention to the surroundings.
Many people start diving for the adventure of experiencing a different environment and the ability to maneuver fairly freely in three dimensions, but the novelty wears off after a while. This may be replaced by the satisfaction of developing the skills to operate in a wider range of environments, and developing excellence in those skills, the addition of compatible interests and activities to complement the basic activity, like underwater photography and an interest in the details of the environment, including exploration and study and recording of aspects of the environment. Experience of the underwater environment varies depending on where the diver has access to suitable sites - there is more to see on a coastal reef than in most freshwater lakes, and
scuba diving tourism
Scuba diving tourism is the industry based on servicing the requirements of recreational divers at destinations other than where they live. It includes aspects of training, equipment sales, rental and service, guided experiences and environmental t ...
can make a wide variety of more entertaining and challenging sites available. Exploration can also extend beyond tourism to the search for previously unvisited sites and the satisfaction of being the first to be there and in some cases, tell the story.
Reasons to dive include:
*Tourism and sight-seeing, including visiting a variety of places with different things to see.
*Extreme sport aspect: some divers wish to explore their personal limits and abilities under challenging conditions. This includes some competitive underwater sports, and environmental and physiological challenges.
*Naturalist and underwater life observers. This may be combined with recording the environment and contributing to citizen science databases.
*Exploration: the underwater environment is relatively unexplored, it is not difficult to find places where no-one has gone before or if they have, no-one has recorded the fact or described or surveyed the site, even quite close to heavily populated areas. The marine ecosystems are largely undescribed, and there are many undiscovered species yet to be found and described. There are shipwrecks and flooded caves to challenge the adventurous and foolhardy.
*Stress management: recreational diving in reasonably good conditions which are comfortably managed by the diver can produce health benefits of mood improvement.
Activities
There are many recreational diving activities, and equipment and environmental specialties which require skills additional to those provided by the entry level courses, These skills were originally developed by trial and error, but training programmes are offered by most diver training agencies for the convenience of the diver, and profit for the agency, or in the case of club oriented systems, for the overall benefit of the club communuty:
Activities:
*
Snorkeling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a ...
– Swimming at the surface with a diving mask and snorkel to view the shallow underwater environment.
*
Free-diving
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving is a form of underwater diving that relies on breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as scuba gear.
Besides the limits of breath-h ...
(also called skin diving) – Swimming below the surface on breath-hold.
* Identifying, surveying, and monitoring sea life and freshwater life: This may be associated with citizen science projects and underwater photography (see also
marine biology
Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies s ...
).
*
Maritime archeology
Maritime archaeology (also known as marine archaeology) is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, s ...
or
Underwater archeology
Underwater archaeology is archaeology practiced underwater. As with all other branches of archaeology, it evolved from its roots in pre-history and in the classical era to include sites from the historical and industrial eras. Its acceptance has ...
– Also may be associated with citizen science and underwater photography
*
Rescue Diver
Rescue Diver is a scuba diving certification level provided by several diver training agencies, such as PADI, SSI, SDI, and NAUI, – Usually considered a desirable diving skill, but may be part of the requirements and function of volunteer safety divers, and generally a requirement for any dive leadership certification.
*
Underwater navigation
Diver navigation, termed "underwater navigation" by Scuba diving, scuba divers, is a set of techniques—including observing natural features, the use of a compass, and surface observations—that divers use to Navigation, navigate underwater. ...
– Enhanced competence at following and recording underwater routes, generally excluding the use of a guide-line, which is considered a separate competence, and using a compass and landmarks.
*
Underwater photography
Underwater photography is the process of taking photographs while under water. It is usually done while scuba diving, but can be done while diving on surface supply, snorkeling, swimming, from a submersible or remotely operated underwater veh ...
- Use of photographic equipment designed or modified for underwater use for recording the environment or artistic purposes.
*
Underwater search and recovery
Underwater search and recovery is the process of locating and recovering underwater objects, often by divers, but also by the use of submersibles, remotely operated vehicles and electronic equipment on surface vessels.
Most underwater search ...
Knowledge and procedural skills for conducting underwater searches and recovering relatively small objects from underwater.
*
Underwater videography
Underwater videography is the branch of electronic underwater photography concerned with capturing underwater moving images as a recreational diving, scientific, commercial, documentary, or filmmaking activity.
History
In 1909, Albert Samama ...
– Use of video recording equipment designed or modified for underwater use for recording the environment or artistic purposes.
* Underwater hunting and gathering for sport and food. The ecological impact is variable, but can be severe.
Specialties
Some recreational diving activities require skills sufficiently beyond the basic recreational open water diving skill set that they are classed by the recreational diver training industry as specialties, and for which further training and certification is available. These can be broadly distinguished as environmental and equipment specialties.
Environmental specialties:
*
Altitude diving
Altitude diving is underwater diving using scuba or surface supplied diving equipment where the surface is or more above sea level (for example, a mountain lake). Altitude is significant in diving because it affects the decompression requiremen ...
– Knowledge and skills associated with diving in waters where the surface pressure is significantly below average sea level pressure, and affects decompression.
*
Cave diving
Cave-diving is underwater diving in water-filled caves. It may be done as an extreme sport, a way of exploring flooded caves for scientific investigation, or for the search for and recovery of divers or, as in the 2018 Thai cave rescue, other ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk in underwater cave environments.
*
Deep diving
Deep diving is underwater diving to a depth beyond the norm accepted by the associated community. In some cases this is a prescribed limit established by an authority, while in others it is associated with a level of certification or training, an ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk at greater depths, and the decompression associated with deep exposure.
*
Drift diving
Drift diving is a type of scuba diving where the diver is transported by the water movement caused by the tide, an ocean current or in a river. The choice whether to drift dive depends on the purpose of the dive, and whether there is an option. ...
– Procedures used to dive while transported by currents.
*
Ice diving
Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk in very cold water and under an ice surface layer.
*
Low impact diving
Low impact diving is recreational scuba diving that is intended to minimise environmental impact by using techniques and procedures that reduce the adverse effects on the environment to the minimum that is reasonably practicable for the situation. ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills intended to minimise the environmental impact of recreational diving, mainly by minimising contact with the sensitive reef life, but it also applies to diving on fragile structure of historical wrecks and in caves with delicate rock formations.
*
Night diving
Night diving is underwater diving done during the hours of darkness. It frequently refers specifically to recreational diving which takes place in darkness. The diver can experience a different underwater environment at night, because many marine ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk while diving in very low levels of natural illumination.
*
Underwater survey
An underwater survey is a survey performed in an underwater environment or conducted remotely on an underwater object or region. Survey can have several meanings. The word originates in Medieval Latin with meanings of ''looking over'' and ''detail ...
s and mapping of dive sites, in caves, wrecks and open water reefs. A part of recording exploration, and of archaeological work.
*
Wreck diving
Wreck diving is recreational diving where the wreckage of ships, aircraft and other artificial structures are explored. Although most wreck dive sites are at shipwrecks, there is an increasing trend to scuttle retired ships to create artificia ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk while diving inside wrecks.
Equipment specialties:
*
Dry suit
A dry suit or drysuit provides the wearer with environmental protection by way of thermal insulation and exclusion of water, and is worn by divers, boaters, water sports enthusiasts, and others who work or play in or near cold or contaminated ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk associated with the use of dry suits, and optimising their usage.
*
Rebreather
A rebreather is a breathing apparatus that absorbs the carbon dioxide of a user's breathing, exhaled breath to permit the rebreathing (recycling) of the substantially unused oxygen content, and unused inert content when present, of each breath. ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to managing risk related to diving with rebreathers. Type certification is often required for the specific model of rebreather.
*
Sidemount diving
Sidemount is a scuba diving equipment configuration which has scuba sets mounted alongside the diver, below the shoulders and along the hips, instead of on the back of the diver. It originated as a configuration for advanced cave diving, as i ...
– Knowledge and procedural skills related to use of side-mounted scuba equipment.
* Nitrox diving – Knowledge related to managing risk when using nitrox as a breathing gas.
* Recreational trimix diving – Knowledge related to managing risk when using trimix as a breathing gas. The depths which make trimix a preferred breathing gas also often imply obligatory decompression and gas switching for accelerated decompression.
* Safe use of a
diver propulsion vehicle
A diver propulsion vehicle (DPV), also known as an underwater propulsion vehicle, sea scooter, underwater scooter, or swimmer delivery vehicle (SDV) by armed forces, is an item of diving equipment used by scuba divers to increase range underw ...
(scooter). This activity is not generally associated with a formal training programme and certification, but some practice and knowledge is necessary for safe and effective use, particularly in combination with other complex or high risk activities or equipment.
Many
diver training
Diver training is the set of processes through which a person learns the necessary and desirable skills to safely dive underwater within the scope of the diver training standard relevant to the specific training programme. Most diver training ...
IANTD #REDIRECT International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers
The International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers (IANTD) is a scuba diving organization concerned with certification and training in recreational diving, technical ...
technical diving
Technical diving (also referred to as tec diving or tech diving) is scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually ...
,
public safety diving
Public safety diving is underwater diving conducted as part of law enforcement and search and rescue. Public safety divers differ from recreational, scientific and commercial divers who can generally plan the date, time, and location of a dive, ...
and others.
History
Recreational scuba diving grew out of related activities such as
Snorkeling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a ...
and underwater hunting. For a long time, recreational underwater excursions were limited by breath-hold time. The invention of the aqualung in 1943 by
Émile Gagnan
Émile Gagnan (1900 – 1984) was a French engineer and, in 1943, co-inventor with French Navy diver Jacques-Yves Cousteau of the Aqua-Lung, the diving regulator (a.k.a. demand-valve) used for the first Scuba equipment. The demand-valve, or re ...
and
Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Jacques-Yves Cousteau, (, also , ; 11 June 191025 June 1997) was a French naval officer, oceanographer, filmmaker and author. He co-invented the first successful Aqua-Lung, open-circuit SCUBA (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus). Th ...
and the
wetsuit
A wetsuit is a garment worn to provide thermal protection while wet. It is usually made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by surfing, surfers, Underwater diving, divers, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports and other activit ...
in 1952 by
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
physicist,
Hugh Bradner
Hugh Bradner (November 5, 1915 – May 5, 2008) was an American physicist at the University of California who is credited with inventing the neoprene wetsuit, which helped to revolutionize scuba diving and surfing.
A graduate of Ohio's Miami Un ...
and its development over subsequent years led to a revolution in recreational diving. However, for much of the 1950s and early 1960s, recreational scuba diving was a sport limited to those who were able to afford or make their own kit, and prepared to undergo intensive training to use it.
As the sport became more popular, manufacturers became aware of the potential market, and equipment began to appear that was easy to use, affordable and reliable. Continued advances in SCUBA technology, such as buoyancy compensators, improved
diving regulator
A diving regulator is a pressure regulator that controls the pressure of breathing gas for diving. The most commonly recognised application is to reduce pressurized breathing gas to ambient pressure and deliver it to the diver, but there are als ...
dry suit
A dry suit or drysuit provides the wearer with environmental protection by way of thermal insulation and exclusion of water, and is worn by divers, boaters, water sports enthusiasts, and others who work or play in or near cold or contaminated ...
s, and
dive computer
A dive computer, personal decompression computer or decompression meter is a device used by an underwater diver to measure the elapsed time and depth during a dive and use this data to calculate and display an ascent profile which according to t ...
s, increased the safety, comfort and convenience of the gear encouraging more people to train and use it.
Until the early 1950s, navies and other organizations performing
professional diving
Professional diving is underwater diving where the divers are paid for their work. The procedures are often regulated by legislation and codes of practice as it is an inherently hazardous occupation and the diver works as a member of a team. Du ...
were the only providers of diver training, but only for their own personnel and only using their own types of equipment. The first scuba diving school was opened in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
to train the owners of the Cousteau and Gagnan designed twin-hose scuba. The first school to teach single hose scuba was started in 1953, in
Melbourne, Australia
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropol ...
, at the Melbourne City Baths.
RAN
Ran, RaN and ran may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Ran'' (film), a 1985 film directed by Akira Kurosawa
* "Ran" (song), a 2013 Japanese song by Luna Sea
* '' Ran Online'', a 2004 MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game)
* ...
Commander Batterham organized the school to assist the inventor of the single hose regulator,
Ted Eldred
Edward Francis Eldred (16 December 1920 to August 2005) was a pioneer of scuba diving in Australia. He invented Porpoise scuba gear.
Early years
Eldred was born in Melbourne in 1920. As a young man he lived by the sea near Sorrento on the Mor ...
. However, neither of these schools was international in nature.
There were no formal training courses available to civilians who bought the early scuba equipment. Some of the first training started in 1952 at the
Scripps Institution of Oceanography
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (sometimes referred to as SIO, Scripps Oceanography, or Scripps) in San Diego, California, US founded in 1903, is one of the oldest and largest centers for oceanography, ocean and Earth science research ...
where Andy Rechnitzer, Bob Dill and Connie Limbaugh taught the first scuba courses in the United States, then in 1953
Trevor Hampton
(Captain) Trevor Hampton AFC (28 November 1912 – 21 February 2002) was one of the United Kingdom's first scuba divers and helped to develop sport diving in the UK.
Early years
Trevor Arthur Hampton was born in Birmingham on 28 November 1912. H ...
Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...
created an Underwater Instructor Certification Course based on the training that they received from the scientific divers of the
Scripps Institution of Oceanography
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (sometimes referred to as SIO, Scripps Oceanography, or Scripps) in San Diego, California, US founded in 1903, is one of the oldest and largest centers for oceanography, ocean and Earth science research ...
. Early instruction developed in the format of amateur teaching within a club environment, as exemplified by organizations such as the
Scottish Sub Aqua Club
The Scottish Sub Aqua Club (ScotSAC) was founded in Glasgow in 1953. Today it is a company limited by guarantee with nearly 70 branches and 1200 members. ScotSAC instructors provide scuba diving training to branch members on an amateur basis ...
and the
British Sub Aqua Club
The British Sub-Aqua Club or BSAC has been recognised since 1954 by UK Sport as the national governing body of recreational diving in the United Kingdom.
The club was founded in 1953 and at its peak in the mid-1990s had over 50,000 members dec ...
from 1953,
Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...
from 1954 and the
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...
from 1959.
Professional instruction started in 1959 when the non-profit NAUI was formed, which later effectively was split, to form the for-profit PADI in 1966. The National Association of Scuba Diving Schools (NASDS) started with their dive center based training programs in 1962 followed by SSI in 1970. Professional Diving Instructors College was formed in 1965, changing its name in 1984 to
Professional Diving Instructors Corporation
The Professional Diving Instructors Corporation (PDIC) is an international SCUBA
Scuba may refer to:
* Scuba diving
** Scuba set, the equipment used for scuba (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving
* Scuba, an in-memory databa ...
(PDIC).
In 2009 PADI alone issued approximately 950,000 diving certifications. Approximately 550,000 of these certifications were "entry level" certifications and the remainder were more advanced certifications.
Scuba-diving has become a popular leisure activity, and many diving destinations have some form of dive shop presence that can offer air fills, equipment sale, rental and repair, and training. In
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in
the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...
and
sub-tropical
The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical and climate zones to the north and south of the tropics. Geographically part of the temperate zones of both hemispheres, they cover the middle latitudes from to approximately 35° north and ...
parts of the world, there is a large market for 'holiday divers'; people who train and dive while on holiday, but rarely dive close to home.
Technical diving
Technical diving (also referred to as tec diving or tech diving) is scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually ...
and the use of
rebreather
A rebreather is a breathing apparatus that absorbs the carbon dioxide of a user's breathing, exhaled breath to permit the rebreathing (recycling) of the substantially unused oxygen content, and unused inert content when present, of each breath. ...
s are increasing, particularly in areas of the world where deeper
wreck diving
Wreck diving is recreational diving where the wreckage of ships, aircraft and other artificial structures are explored. Although most wreck dive sites are at shipwrecks, there is an increasing trend to scuttle retired ships to create artificia ...
is the main underwater attraction. Generally, recreational diving depths are limited by the training agencies to a maximum of between 30 and 40 meters (100 and 130 feet), beyond which a variety of safety issues such as
oxygen toxicity
Oxygen toxicity is a condition resulting from the harmful effects of breathing molecular oxygen () at increased partial pressures. Severe cases can result in cell damage and death, with effects most often seen in the central nervous system, lu ...
and
nitrogen narcosis
Narcosis while diving (also known as nitrogen narcosis, inert gas narcosis, raptures of the deep, Martini effect) is a reversible alteration in consciousness that occurs while diving at depth. It is caused by the anesthetic effect of certain gas ...
significantly increase the risk of diving using recreational diving equipment and practices, and specialized skills and equipment for
technical diving
Technical diving (also referred to as tec diving or tech diving) is scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually ...
are needed.
Standard equipment
The standard recreational open circuit scuba equipment includes the following items:
Basic equipment, which can be used for most modes of ambient pressure diving:
* a
diving mask
Diving most often refers to:
* Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water
* Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes
Diving or Dive may also refer to:
Sports
* Dive (American football), a ...
for
underwater vision
Underwater vision is the ability to see objects underwater, and this is significantly affected by several factors. Underwater, objects are less visible because of lower levels of natural illumination caused by rapid attenuation of light with dist ...
;
* a snorkel to aid surface swimming;
* a pair of
swimfin
Swimfins, swim fins, diving fins, or flippers are finlike accessories worn on the feet, legs or hands and made from rubber, plastic, carbon fiber or combinations of these materials, to aid movement through the water in water sports activities su ...
s, for mobility;
* a
diving suit
A diving suit is a garment or device designed to protect a diver from the underwater environment. A diving suit may also incorporate a breathing gas supply (such as for a standard diving dress or atmospheric diving suit). but in most cases the te ...
, which may be a
dry suit
A dry suit or drysuit provides the wearer with environmental protection by way of thermal insulation and exclusion of water, and is worn by divers, boaters, water sports enthusiasts, and others who work or play in or near cold or contaminated ...
,
wetsuit
A wetsuit is a garment worn to provide thermal protection while wet. It is usually made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by surfing, surfers, Underwater diving, divers, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports and other activit ...
or
dive skins
A diving suit is a garment or device designed to protect a diver from the underwater environment. A diving suit may also incorporate a breathing gas supply (such as for a standard diving dress or atmospheric diving suit). but in most cases the te ...
, or a regular
swimsuit
A swimsuit is an item of clothing designed to be worn by people engaging in a water-based activity or List of water sports, water sports, such as swimming, Diving (sport), diving and surfing, or sun-orientated activities, such as sun bathing. Di ...
, depending on the water temperature and other factors, for thermal and environmental protection;
* a
diving weighting system
A diving weighting system is ballast weight added to a diver or diving equipment to counteract excess buoyancy. They may be used by divers or on equipment such as diving bells, submersibles or camera housings.
Divers wear diver weighting system ...
such as a weight belt or BCD integrated weight system, to counteract the buoyancy of the fully equipped diver (mostly the diving suit);
A scuba set, comprising:
* a single
diving cylinder
A diving cylinder or diving gas cylinder is a gas cylinder used to store and transport high pressure gas used in diving operations. This may be breathing gas used with a scuba set, in which case the cylinder may also be referred to as a scu ...
(also known as scuba tank), with cylinder valve, to supply breathing air, and a harness to support it. In the past, twin cylinders were also popular.
* a buoyancy compensator, (also known as buoyancy control device or BCD), which is usually part of the harness used to carry the cylinder, to adjust buoyancy by controlled inflation and deflation.
* a
diving regulator
A diving regulator is a pressure regulator that controls the pressure of breathing gas for diving. The most commonly recognised application is to reduce pressurized breathing gas to ambient pressure and deliver it to the diver, but there are als ...
to reduce the pressure of the air from the cylinder, with:
** a primary second stage, to supply the diver with ambient pressure air on demand;
** a secondary second stage (octopus) to supply emergency air to a buddy diver who needs assistance;
** a submersible pressure gauge (SPG) (also known as contents gauge), to monitor the remaining air supply;
** a low pressure inflation hose for the buoyancy compensator, and if applicable, for the dry suit, to inflate the BCD and suit for buoyancy control and to avoid suit squeeze.
Auxiliary equipment to enhance safety.
* a
dive computer
A dive computer, personal decompression computer or decompression meter is a device used by an underwater diver to measure the elapsed time and depth during a dive and use this data to calculate and display an ascent profile which according to t ...
(also known as personal decompression computer) or a
depth gauge
A depth gauge is an instrument for measuring depth below a reference surface. They include depth gauges for underwater diving and similar applications, and engineering instruments used to measure the depth of holes and indentations from a refer ...
and
timer
A timer is a specialized type of clock used for measuring specific time intervals.
Timers can be categorized into two main types.
The word "timer" is usually reserved for devices that counts down from a specified time interval, while devices th ...
, to monitor the dive profile, avoid decompression obligation and facilitate a controlled ascent;
* a
surface marker buoy
A surface marker buoy, SMB, dive float or simply a blob is a buoy used by scuba divers, at the end of a line from the diver, intended to indicate the diver's position to people at the surface while the diver is underwater. Two kinds are used; ...
or other surface detection aid may be standard equipment in some regions to allow the surface crew and boats to monitor the diver's position.
* a diver's cutting tool should be carried in areas where there is a significant risk of entanglement in ropes, lines, or nets. (usually lost or discarded fishing gear)
For solo diving a
bailout cylinder
A bailout bottle (BoB) or, more formally, bailout cylinder is a scuba cylinder carried by an underwater diver for use as an emergency supply of breathing gas in the event of a primary gas supply failure. A bailout cylinder may be carried by a scu ...
is considered standard for dives where there is an appreciable risk of entrapment, or where a direct
controlled emergency swimming ascent
An emergency ascent is an ascent to the surface by a diver in an emergency. More specifically, it refers to any of several procedures for reaching the surface in the event of an out-of-air emergency, generally while scuba diving.
Emergency asc ...
is not an acceptable option to manage an out-of-air incident at any point in the planned dive profile.
Standard procedures
Some skills are generally accepted by recreational
diver certification
A Diving certification or C-card is a document (usually a wallet sized plastic card) recognizing that an individual or organization authorized to do so, "certifies" that the bearer has completed a course of training as required by the agency issu ...
agencies as necessary for any
scuba diver
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chris ...
to be considered competent to dive without direct supervision, and others are more advanced, though some diver certification and accreditation organizations may consider some of these to also be essential for minimum acceptable entry level competence. Divers are instructed and assessed on these skills during basic and advanced training, and are expected to remain competent at their level of certification, either by practice or refresher courses.
The skills include selection, functional testing, preparation and transport of scuba equipment, dive planning, preparation for a dive, kitting up for the dive, water entry, descent, breathing underwater, monitoring the dive profile (depth, time and decompression status), personal breathing gas management, situational awareness, communicating with the dive team, buoyancy and trim control, mobility in the water, ascent, emergency and rescue procedures, exit from the water, un-kitting after the dive, cleaning and preparation of equipment for storage, and recording the dive, within the scope of the diver's certification.
A significant amount of harmonization of training standards and standard and emergency procedures has developed over the years, largely due to organisations like
World Recreational Scuba Training Council
The World Recreational Scuba Training Council (WRSTC) was founded in 1999 and is dedicated to creating minimum recreational diving training standards for the various scuba diving certification agencies across the world. The WRSTC restricts its me ...
. This allows divers trained by the various certifying organisations to dive together with a minimum of confusion, which enhances safety.
Diver communications
Diver communications are the methods used by divers to communicate with each other or with surface members of the dive team. In professional diving, diver communication is usually between a single working diver and the diving supervisor at the ...
is a particular aspect where most of the basic
hand signals
Hand signals are given by cyclists and some motorists to indicate their intentions to other traffic. Under the Vienna Convention on Traffic, bicycles are considered 'vehicles' and cyclists are considered 'drivers', a naming convention reflec ...
are common to most recreational diver training agencies.
This does not mean that there is no variation. There are some procedures such as emergency donation of air which are quite strongly polarized between those who advocate donation of the secondary (octopus) regulator and those who advocate donating the primary regulator. Length of regulator hose and position of the secondary second stage depend on the donation technique.
There are also variations in procedures for self rescue in an out-of-air situation, and in procedures for bringing an unresponsive casualty to the surface.
Solo diving, once considered
technical diving
Technical diving (also referred to as tec diving or tech diving) is scuba diving that exceeds the agency-specified limits of recreational diving
Recreational diving or sport diving is diving for the purpose of leisure and enjoyment, usually ...
and discouraged by most certification agencies, is now seen by many experienced divers and some certification agencies as an acceptable practice for those divers suitably trained and experienced. Rather than relying on the traditional
buddy diving
Buddy diving is the use of the buddy system by scuba divers. It is a set of safety procedures intended to improve the chances of avoiding or surviving accidents in or under water by having divers dive in a group of two or sometimes three. When ...
safety system, solo divers rely on self-sufficiency and are willing to take responsibility for their own safety while diving.
Buddy diving
Buddy diving is the use of the buddy system by scuba divers. It is a set of safety procedures intended to improve the chances of avoiding or surviving accidents in or under water by having divers dive in a group of two or sometimes three. When ...
is the more generally advocated procedural alternative, on the principle that in case of an emergency, a dive buddy can assist the diver in difficulty, but this is only valid if the buddy is close enough to help, notices the problem, and is competent and willing to assist.
Training
Many recreational diver training organisations exist, throughout the world, offering diver training leading to certification: the issuing of a " diver certification card", also known as a "C-card," or qualification card.
Recreational diver training courses range from minor specialties which require one classroom session and an open water dive, and which may be completed in a day, to complex specialties which may take several days to weeks, and require several classroom sessions, confined water skills training and practice, and a substantial number of open-water dives, followed by rigorous assessment of knowledge and skills. Details on the approximate duration of training can be found on the websites of most certification agencies, but accurate schedules are generally only available from the specific school or instructor who will present that course, as this will depend on the local conditions and other constraints.
Diving instructors affiliated to a diving certification agency may work independently or through a university, a dive club, a dive school or a dive shop. They will offer courses that should meet, or exceed, the standards of the certification organisation that will certify the divers attending the course.
Diving skills
Diver training can be divided into entry level training, which are those skills and knowledge considered essential for the diver to dive unsupervised at an acceptably low level of risk by the certifying agency, and further skills and knowledge which allow better performance and extend the environmental capacity and equipment choices of the diver.
Entry level
There is a significant variation in entry level training, with some training agencies requiring the bare minimum as specified by RSTC and ISO, and others requiring a greater level of competence with associated assumption of lower risk to the diver and dive buddy, and less likelihood of environmental damage. Entry level training may include skills for assisting or rescue of another diver, but this is not always the case. Divers without rescue training are routinely assigned to dive as buddy pairs to follow organizational protocols. This is not generally a contravention of the training agencies' recommendations.
The initial training for open water certification for a person who is medically fit to dive and a reasonably competent swimmer is relatively short. The minimum number of open-water dives required for certification is usually four, but instructors are generally required by training standards to ensure that the diver is sufficiently skilled to dive safely in the local environment before certification is issued, and this may require further training and experience beyond the required minimum. Many dive shops in popular holiday locations offer courses intended to teach a novice to dive in a few days, which can be combined with diving on the vacation. Other instructors and dive schools will provide more thorough training, which generally takes longer.
Beyond entry level
Skills and knowledge beyond the minimum requirement are generally labelled ''Advanced skills'', and these may include skills such as competent buoyancy control, which are included in the entry level skills by other agencies. Many skills which are considered advanced by recreational training agencies are considered basic entry-level skills for professional divers.
Training standards
Each diver certification agency has its own set of diver training standards for each level of certification that they issue. Although these standards are usually available on request or on the organisation's website, the assessment criteria are often not available to the public, making a direct comparison of standards difficult. Most agencies comply with the minimum requirements of the
World Recreational Scuba Training Council
The World Recreational Scuba Training Council (WRSTC) was founded in 1999 and is dedicated to creating minimum recreational diving training standards for the various scuba diving certification agencies across the world. The WRSTC restricts its me ...
(WRSTC) or ISO for the relevant certification (ISO 24801-2 Autonomous diver, and ISO 24801-3 Dive leader), but most certification levels are not defined by the international standards.
Under most entry-level programs ( SEI, SDI, PADI, BSAC, SSAC, NAUI, SSI, and PDIC), divers can complete a certification with as few as four open water dives. This complies with the minimum requirements of ISO 24801-2 Autonomous diver. Such a qualification allows divers to rent equipment, receive air fills, and dive without supervision to depths typically restricted to 18 meters (60 feet) with an equally qualified
buddy
Buddy may refer to:
People
*Buddy (nickname)
*Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present)
*Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992)
*Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...
in conditions similar to, or easier than those in which they were trained. Certification agencies advise their students to dive within the scope of their experience and training, and to extend their training to suit the conditions in which they plan to dive.
In the 1980s, several agencies with DEMA collaborated to author ANSI Standard Z86.3 (1989), ''Minimum Course Content For Safe Scuba Diving'' which defines their training as the ''Accepted Industry Practices''. The International Standards Organisation has since published ISO 24801 and ISO 24802 which define minimum training standards for two levels of recreational diver and for recreational diving instructors.
A few recreational certification agencies such as
GUE
The gue is an extinct type of two-stringed Bowed string instrument, bowed lyre or zither from the Shetland Isles. The instrument was described in 1809 by Arthur Edmondston in ''View of the Ancient and Present State of the Zetland Islands'':"Before ...
, and the commercial diver training standards of several countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, and Canada, consider the competence provided by the recreational diver training industry minimum standard to be inadequate for safe diving, particularly occupational diving, where the diver has a legal duty of care towards other members of the dive team, even though the responsibility for occupational dive planning and safety is held by a professional
diving supervisor
The diving supervisor is the professional diving team member who is directly responsible for the diving operation's safety and the management of any incidents or accidents that may occur during the operation; the supervisor is required to be ava ...
.
Risk
Recreational scuba diving involves physical and psychological risks and therefore can be classified as an extreme sport. Fatality rates of 16.4 deaths per 100,000 persons per year among DAN America members and 14.4 deaths per 100,000 persons per year the
British Sub-Aqua Club
The British Sub-Aqua Club or BSAC has been recognised since 1954 by UK Sport as the national governing body of recreational diving in the United Kingdom.
The club was founded in 1953 and at its peak in the mid-1990s had over 50,000 members dec ...
(BSAC) members were similar and did not change during 2000–2006. This is comparable with
jogging
Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...
(13 deaths per 100,000 persons per year) and motor vehicle accidents (16 deaths per 100,000 persons per year), and within the range where reduction is desirable by
Health and Safety Executive
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a UK government agency responsible for the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare, and for research into occupational risks in Great Britain. It is a non-depar ...
(HSE) criteria.
Data for 17 million student-diver certifications during 63 million student dives over a 20-year period from 1989–2008 show a mean per capita death rate of 1.7 deaths per 100,000 student divers per year. This was lower than for insured DAN members during 2000–2006 at 16.4 deaths per 100,000 DAN members per year, but fatality rate per dive is a better measure of exposure risk, A mean annual fatality rate of 0.48 deaths per 100,000 student dives per year and 0.54 deaths per 100,000 BSAC dives per year and 1.03 deaths per 100,000 non-BSAC dives per year during 2007. The total size of the diving
population
Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
is important for determining overall fatality rates, and the population estimates from the 1990s of several million U.S. divers need to be updated.
The most frequent root cause for diving fatalities is running out of or low on gas. Other factors cited include loss of buoyancy control, entanglement or entrapment, rough water, equipment misuse or problems, and
emergency ascent
An emergency ascent is an ascent to the surface by a diver in an emergency. More specifically, it refers to any of several procedures for reaching the surface in the event of an out-of-air emergency, generally while scuba diving.
Emergency asc ...
, which is often a response to a breathing gas problem. The most common injuries and causes of death were drowning or asphyxia due to inhalation of water, air embolism and cardiac events. Risk of cardiac arrest is greater for older divers, and greater for men than women, although the risks are equal by age 65.
Several plausible opinions have been put forward but have not yet been empirically validated. Suggested contributing factors included inexperience, infrequent diving, inadequate supervision, insufficient predive briefings,
buddy
Buddy may refer to:
People
*Buddy (nickname)
*Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present)
*Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992)
*Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...
separation, and dive conditions beyond the diver's training, experience, or physical capacity.
Legal status
Legal constraints on recreational diving vary considerably across jurisdictions. In many countries recreational diving is either not mentioned at all in laws and regulations, or specifically excluded from regulations covering occupational diving. In others, only diver training and dive-leading activities where the diver is either employed or takes a leadership position where they are responsible for the safety of others is covered by legislation. At the other extreme, countries such as Israel have statutory law covering all recreational diving activities.
Recreational diver training and dive leading are industry regulated in some countries, and only directly regulated by government in a subset of them. In the UK, HSE legislation includes recreational diver training and dive leading for reward; in the US and South Africa industry regulation is accepted, though non-specific health and safety legislation still applies. In Israel recreational diving activities are regulated by the Recreational Diving Act, 1979.
The legal responsibility for recreational diving service providers is usually limited as far as possible by
waiver
A waiver is the voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege.
Regulatory agencies of state departments or the federal government may issue waivers to exempt companies from certain regulations. For example, a United St ...
s which they require the customer to sign before engaging in any diving activity. The extent of responsibility of recreational buddy divers is unclear and has been the subject of considerable litigation. It is probable that it varies between jurisdictions. In spite of this lack of clarity, and conflicting evidence, buddy diving is recommended by recreational diver training agencies as safer than
solo diving
Solo diving is the practice of self-sufficient underwater diving without a " dive buddy", particularly with reference to scuba diving, but the term is also applied to freediving. Professionally, solo diving has always been an option which depen ...
, and some service providers insist that customers dive in buddy pairs.
Economic impact
Recreational diving provides a market for the diving equipment industry, the diver training industry and the diver services industry, all of which are interdependent, and at retail level, frequently provided by the same local specialist outlet.
The combined contribution of recreational scuba diving and snorkeling to the US gross domestic product was estimated at $11 billion in a 2019 report by the
Diving Equipment and Marketing Association
Diving Equipment and Marketing Association (DEMA, formerly the Diving Equipment Manufacturers Association), is an international organization dedicated to the promotion and growth of the recreational scuba diving
Recreational diving or sport ...
Scuba diving tourism is the industry based on servicing the requirements of recreational divers at destinations other than where they live. It includes aspects of training, equipment sales, rental and service, guided experiences and environmental tourism. Customer satisfaction is largely dependent on the quality of services provided, and personal communication has a strong influence on the popularity of specific service providers in a region.
Demographics
A 2014 survey of American divers indicates with a high level of confidence for the specified population, that about 3.145 million Americans (1.1 percent of population) took part in scuba diving at least once in the survey year, which is a 0.9 percent decrease over 2013, but participation increased by 1.3 percent on average for the previous five years. There were about 2.252 million casual participants who made between one and seven dives per year and 893,000 core participants who dived eight or more times per year. 66% of casual and 74% of core participants were male. The age distribution of casual and core participants differs. Core participants tend to be older. Casual participation tends to gradually rise to a peak in early middle age, then drop markedly after about 45 years old, while core participation tends to continue at a relatively consistent rate over age groups up to about 65 years, after which it drops markedly. Some training agencies will accept trainees as young as 8 years old for participation in supervised scuba experiences, and 10 years for certification. The record age for a scuba dive as of January 2020 is 95 years. Recreational scuba divers appear to be on average wealthier and better educated than the general population, as indicated by earlier surveys. There is a greater tendency than average for scuba divers to participate in other sporting and exercise activities than the general population, but lack of adequate physical fitness is frequently cited as a contributory factor in diving accidents.
The medical literature, anecdotal evidence and a small-scale survey suggest that a significant part of the recreational scuba diving population may have chronic medical conditions that affect their fitness to dive according to the Recreational Scuba Training Council's guidelines. This may have an influence on risk, as unfitness and preexisting medical conditions are frequently cited in incident reports where the incident was adequately investigated.
PADI worldwide certification statistics indicate a slow but steady trend of increasing proportion of certification of female divers at all levels from 34.4% in 2013 to 38.0% in 2018, and a decrease in the average age of certifications over the same period.
Personality profiles of recreational divers were analysed in a 2010 study on entry level divers: The participants scored high on self-sufficiency, impulsiveness and boldness and low on warmth, sensitivity and conformity, and differed from the typical
extreme sport
Action sports, adventure sports or extreme sports are activities perceived as involving a high degree of risk. These activities often involve speed, height, a high level of physical exertion and highly specialized gear. Extreme tourism overl ...
adventurer
An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
, dreamer, rationalist and passive-aggressive macho diver, and results suggested that the risk behaviour likely to be exhibited by the diver would depend on their personality type.
Venues for diving
Most types of bodies of water can be used as dive sites:
*
Sea
The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...
s and
oceans
The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the worl ...
- these consist of salt water and a huge variety of
flora
Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''.
E ...
and
fauna
Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...
.
*
Lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
s - small lakes are often used for
diver training
Diver training is the set of processes through which a person learns the necessary and desirable skills to safely dive underwater within the scope of the diver training standard relevant to the specific training programme. Most diver training ...
. Large lakes have many features of seas including wrecks and a variety of aquatic life. Some lakes are high in altitude, and they require special considerations for diving. See
altitude diving
Altitude diving is underwater diving using scuba or surface supplied diving equipment where the surface is or more above sea level (for example, a mountain lake). Altitude is significant in diving because it affects the decompression requiremen ...
*
Caves
A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...
- these are more adventurous and dangerous than normal diving. See
cave diving
Cave-diving is underwater diving in water-filled caves. It may be done as an extreme sport, a way of exploring flooded caves for scientific investigation, or for the search for and recovery of divers or, as in the 2018 Thai cave rescue, other ...
.
*
River
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
s - are often shallow, murky and may have strong currents.
* Man-made lakes, such as dams and flooded
clay pit
A clay pit is a quarry or mine for the extraction of clay, which is generally used for manufacturing pottery, bricks or Portland cement. Quarries where clay is mined to make bricks are sometimes called brick pits.
A brickyard or brickworks is of ...
s,
gravel pit
A gravel pit is an open-pit mine for the extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may naturally fill with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used eithe ...
s and
quarries
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their environ ...
.
*
Swimming pools
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built above ground (as ...
are popular as training venues, and for some underwater sports.
Flooded excavations often have low visibility. Disused and flooded quarries are popular in inland areas for diver training as well as recreational diving. Rock quarries may have reasonable underwater visibility - there is often little mud or silt to create mid-water particles that cause low visibility, and the lack of flow allows silt to settle on the bottom, where it may later be kicked up by unskilled divers to temporarily reduce visibility locally. As they are not natural environments, and usually privately owned, quarries may contain objects intentionally placed for divers to explore, such as sunken boats, automobiles, aircraft, or structures like grain silos and gravel chutes. The popularity of a dive site will usually depend on accessibility, known hazards, desirable features, and the variety of alternative options nearby. Sites known for exceptionally desirable features may attract expeditions in spite of major accessibility problems and significant hazards.
Dive site features
Many types of underwater features make an interesting dive site, for example:
*Wildlife at the site. Popular examples are
coral
Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...
,
sponge
Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate through t ...
s,
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
,
sting ray
Stingrays are a group of sea rays, which are cartilaginous fish related to sharks. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae ( ...
s,
mollusc
Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is esti ...
s,
cetacea
Cetacea (; , ) is an infraorder of aquatic mammals that includes whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Key characteristics are their fully aquatic lifestyle, streamlined body shape, often large size and exclusively carnivorous diet. They propel them ...
ns,
seal
Seal may refer to any of the following:
Common uses
* Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly:
** Earless seal, or "true seal"
** Fur seal
* Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...
s,
shark
Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimo ...
s and
crustacean
Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group ...
s.
* The topography of the site.
Coral reef
A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups.
Co ...
s, drop offs (underwater
cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...
s), rock
reef
A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral or similar relatively stable material, lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic processes— deposition of sand, wave erosion planing down rock out ...
s, gullies and
cave
A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...
s can be spectacular. Deep dive sites mean divers must reduce the time they spend because more gas is breathed at depth and
decompression sickness
Decompression sickness (abbreviated DCS; also called divers' disease, the bends, aerobullosis, and caisson disease) is a medical condition caused by dissolved gases emerging from solution as bubbles inside the body tissues during decompressio ...
risks increase. Shallow regions can be investigated by
snorkeling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a ...
.
Wall diving
Underwater diving, as a human activity, is the practice of descending below the water's surface to interact with the environment. It is also often referred to as diving (disambiguation), diving, an ambiguous term with several possible meani ...
allows a range of depths in a small area.
* Historical or cultural items at the site.
Shipwreck
A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. Angela Croome reported in January 1999 that there were approximately ...
s and sunken
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...
, apart from their historical value, form artificial
habitats
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
for marine fauna making them attractive dive sites.
* Underwater
visibility
The visibility is the measure of the distance at which an object or light can be clearly discerned. In meteorology it depends on the transparency of the surrounding air and as such, it is unchanging no matter the ambient light level or time of ...
varies widely. Poor visibility is caused by particles suspended in the water, such as
silt
Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension with water. Silt usually has a floury feel when ...
,
plankton
Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) that are unable to propel themselves against a Ocean current, current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankt ...
and
sewage
Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged from residenc ...
. Dive sites that are close to sources of these particles, such as human settlements and river estuaries, are more prone to poor visibility. Currents and turbulence can stir up particles which had settled, and may keep them in suspension. Diving close to sediments on the bottom can result in the particles being kicked up by wash from the divers fins. Good visibility is a highly desirable characteristic for a dive site, and can significantly influence risk.
* Temperature. Warm water diving is comfortable and convenient. Although cold water is uncomfortable and can cause
hypothermia
Hypothermia is defined as a body core temperature below in humans. Symptoms depend on the temperature. In mild hypothermia, there is shivering and mental confusion. In moderate hypothermia, shivering stops and confusion increases. In severe h ...
it can be interesting because different species of underwater life thrive in cold conditions. For cold water divers tend to prefer dry suits with inner thermal clothing which offer greater thermal protection, although they require additional knowledge and skill to use safely.
* Currents.
Currents
Currents, Current or The Current may refer to:
Science and technology
* Current (fluid), the flow of a liquid or a gas
** Air current, a flow of air
** Ocean current, a current in the ocean
*** Rip current, a kind of water current
** Current (stre ...
can transport
nutrient
A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excret ...
s to underwater wildlife increasing the variety and density of that life at the site. Currents can also be dangerous to divers as they can carry them away from their surface support or suitable exit points. Currents that meet large underwater obstructions can cause strong up or down flow that can be dangerous because it may cause the diver to rapidly change depth, with possible loss of
buoyancy
Buoyancy (), or upthrust, is an upward force exerted by a fluid that opposes the weight of a partially or fully immersed object. In a column of fluid, pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus the p ...
control and increased risk of
barotrauma
Barotrauma is physical damage to body tissues caused by a difference in pressure between a gas space inside, or contact with, the body and the surrounding gas or liquid. The initial damage is usually due to over-stretching the tissues in tensio ...
and decompression sickness.
Marine citizen science
Marine
citizen science
Citizen science (CS) (similar to community science, crowd science, crowd-sourced science, civic science, participatory monitoring, or volunteer monitoring) is scientific research conducted with participation from the public (who are sometimes re ...
, the scientific research and monitoring projects for which members of the public collect, categorize, transcribe or analyze scientific data,
is an increasingly popular but underutilised collaboration between society and scientific research, in which members of the recreational scuba diving community actively participate in marine data acquisition and recording, largely by way of geolocated photographic observations collected during recreational dives, but also in more structured and long term experimental work. Some barriers exist between divers and projects that are beyond the control of either the divers or the project organisers, but other aspects such as access to projects and feedback after participation are amenable to improvement. Recreational scuba divers are generally well disposed towards marine science, and participation could be improved by better management. Stakeholders to be considered are the scuba diving industry and professional intermediaries.
Citizen science can be an effective approach to marine and coastal conservation, and methods of making better use of citizen input for projects relating to policy, education, community capacity building, site management, species management, and research. have been investigated and developed. Marine citizen science projects face different challenges to terrestrial systems. The main challenges are logistical, as people spend very little time in the water. Access often requires expensive boats, diving gear, or transportation to the coast, and safety and liability issues can be complicated. Using citizen scientists can economically increase the temporal and spatial scale of a project. Early involvement of divers in the planning of a project can increase buy-in and avoid errors due to inaccurate assessment of capabilities and interest of volunteers. Training and some field oversight by professionals will usually be necessary to ensure reliable data collection. Retention of volunteers is affected by their perception of the recognition of the value of their work.
The availability of affordable and compact high definition video and easy to operate underwater cameras allows citizen scientists to provide reliable observations that can be archived and reviewed by experts when desirable. Accuracy of geolocation is generally lower than for terrestrial observations as the GPS features available on many digital cameras do not work underwater, and most cameras do not record depth.
See also
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Footnotes
References
External links
Scuba Earth - An interactive scuba diving map of dive sites from all around the world.
diveglobal.com - Global dive site and services reviews
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