Research

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On September 19, 1979 Sylvia Earle set the world untethered diving record by walking 1,250 feet below the surface of the Pacific ocean off the coast of Hawaii. Earle completed her dive in an armored JIM suit accompanied by a small research submersible. The suit had a self-contained supply of air and maintained an interior pressure of one atmosphere. Being able to dive that far down without depending on compressed air to breathe eliminates the need for a diver to undergo the decompression process in order to safely return to the surface. Earle tirelessly worked to raise awareness about the state of the world's oceans.