Aquanaut
Encyclopedia
An Aquanaut is any individual who remains underwater, exposed to the ambient pressure
, long enough to come into equilibrium with his or her breathing media. Usually this is done in an underwater habitat
on the seafloor for a period equal to or greater than 24 continuous hours without returning to the surface. The term is often restricted to scientists and academics, though there were a group of military aquanauts during the SEALAB
program. Commercial Divers in similar circumstances are referred to as Saturation Divers
. An aquanaut is distinct from a submariner, in that a submariner is confined to a moving underwater vehicle such as a submarine
that holds the water pressure out. Aquanaut derives from the Latin word aqua ("water") plus the Greek nautes ("sailor"), by analogy to the similar construction "astronaut
".
The first human aquanaut was Robert Sténuit
, who lived on board a tiny one-man cylinder at 200 feet for 24 hours in September 1962 off Villefranche
on the French Riviera
. Military aquanauts include Robert Sheats, Shorty Lyons, Mike Meisky, Billie L. Coffman, George Dowling, Bill Tolbert, Al Waterfield, and Wally Jenkins, author Robin Cook, and astronauts Scott Carpenter
and Alan Shepard
. Civilian aquanaut Berry L. Cannon
died of carbon dioxide poisoning during the U.S. Navy
's SEALAB III project.
Scientific aquanauts include Richard Cooper, Stephen Neudecker, Jonathan Helfgott, Robert Dill, Sylvia Earle
, Ian Koblick, Neil Monney, Chris Olstad, Joseph MacInnis, John Perry, Harold "Wes" Pratt (on whom the character "Winch" in Jaws
was based), Phillip Sharkey, Alina Szmant, Bill High, Matthew Morgan, Steven Miller, Morgan Wells, C. Lavett Smith and about 700 others, including the crewmembers of NASA
's NEEMO
missions at the Aquarius
underwater laboratory.
Pressure
Pressure is the force per unit area applied in a direction perpendicular to the surface of an object. Gauge pressure is the pressure relative to the local atmospheric or ambient pressure.- Definition :...
, long enough to come into equilibrium with his or her breathing media. Usually this is done in an underwater habitat
Underwater habitat
Underwater habitats are underwater structures in which people can live for extended periods and carry out most of the basic human functions of a 24-hour day, such as working, resting, eating, attending to personal hygiene, and sleeping...
on the seafloor for a period equal to or greater than 24 continuous hours without returning to the surface. The term is often restricted to scientists and academics, though there were a group of military aquanauts during the SEALAB
Sealab
Sealab is a word used to describe underwater habitats.*SEALAB I, II and III, underwater habitats developed by the United States Navy*Sealab 2020, a Hanna-Barbera cartoon about an underwater research base that aired in 1972 in the United States...
program. Commercial Divers in similar circumstances are referred to as Saturation Divers
Saturation diving
Saturation diving is a diving technique that allows divers to reduce the risk of decompression sickness when they work at great depth for long periods of time....
. An aquanaut is distinct from a submariner, in that a submariner is confined to a moving underwater vehicle such as a submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
that holds the water pressure out. Aquanaut derives from the Latin word aqua ("water") plus the Greek nautes ("sailor"), by analogy to the similar construction "astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
".
The first human aquanaut was Robert Sténuit
Robert Sténuit
Robert Pierre André Sténuit is a Belgian journalist, writer, and underwater archeologist. In 1962 he spent 24 hours on the floor of the Mediterranean Sea in the submersible "Link Cylinder" developed by Edwin Link, thus becoming the world's first aquanaut.- Early career :Sténuit began spelunking...
, who lived on board a tiny one-man cylinder at 200 feet for 24 hours in September 1962 off Villefranche
Villefranche
Villefranche is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:Many French towns are called Villefranche , mostly in the south of France...
on the French Riviera
French Riviera
The Côte d'Azur, pronounced , often known in English as the French Riviera , is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France, also including the sovereign state of Monaco...
. Military aquanauts include Robert Sheats, Shorty Lyons, Mike Meisky, Billie L. Coffman, George Dowling, Bill Tolbert, Al Waterfield, and Wally Jenkins, author Robin Cook, and astronauts Scott Carpenter
Scott Carpenter
Malcolm Scott Carpenter is an American engineer, former test pilot, astronaut, and aquanaut. He is best known as one of the original seven astronauts selected for NASA's Project Mercury in April 1959....
and Alan Shepard
Alan Shepard
Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. was an American naval aviator, test pilot, flag officer, and NASA astronaut who in 1961 became the second person, and the first American, in space. This Mercury flight was designed to enter space, but not to achieve orbit...
. Civilian aquanaut Berry L. Cannon
Berry L. Cannon
Berry Louis Cannon was an American aquanaut who served on the SEALAB II and III projects of the U.S. Navy. Cannon died of carbon dioxide poisoning while attempting to repair SEALAB III...
died of carbon dioxide poisoning during the U.S. Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
's SEALAB III project.
Scientific aquanauts include Richard Cooper, Stephen Neudecker, Jonathan Helfgott, Robert Dill, Sylvia Earle
Sylvia Earle
Sylvia Alice Earle is an American oceanographer. She was chief scientist for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from 1990–1992. She is a National Geographic explorer-in-residence, sometimes called "Her Deepness" or "The Sturgeon General".-Education and career:Earle received a...
, Ian Koblick, Neil Monney, Chris Olstad, Joseph MacInnis, John Perry, Harold "Wes" Pratt (on whom the character "Winch" in Jaws
Jaws (film)
Jaws is a 1975 American horror-thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley's novel of the same name. In the story, the police chief of Amity Island, a fictional summer resort town, tries to protect beachgoers from a giant man-eating great white shark by closing the beach,...
was based), Phillip Sharkey, Alina Szmant, Bill High, Matthew Morgan, Steven Miller, Morgan Wells, C. Lavett Smith and about 700 others, including the crewmembers of NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's NEEMO
NEEMO
NEEMO, an acronym for NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations, is a NASA program for studying human survival in the Aquarius underwater laboratory in preparation for future space exploration....
missions at the Aquarius
Aquarius (laboratory)
The NOAA Aquarius Reef Base is an underwater habitat located in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, adjacent to Conch Reef. It is one of the few underwater research facilities in the world dedicated to science...
underwater laboratory.