Archive

Scientists from Large Marine Vertebrates Research Institute Philippines (LAMAVE), Tubbataha Management Office (TMO) and the Marine Megafauna Foundation (MMF) have successfully tagged a 3.5-metre tiger shark and three grey reef sharks as part of a long-term study in Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park. The research expedition between 22 May and 2 June is the latest in the four years that the organizations […]

As beautiful as coral reefs may be they, sometimes they just can’t touch the excitement of diving in a wasteland of mud, sand and rubbish, knowing that hiding there will be some of nature’s weirdest underwater creatures. When you’ve had enough of all those wonderfully coloured fish and dazzling invertebrates living in harmony with the […]

I just came back from a weekend of diving in Subic Bay.  Subic is not your typical reef dive and beach destination in the Philippines, but if you have the “lust for rust”, this is the place to go.  There are a plethora of wrecks to suit all skill and certification levels.  I want to […]

Baa Atoll in the Maldives is the setting for a seasonal spectacle unlike any other witnessed at any other location in the world. The bay of Hanifaru (‘narrow reef’ in Dhivehi) is formed within a westward meandering spur running from the southeastern edge of a small island and large sand flat cay called Hanifaruhuraa. The […]

All of Southeast Asia is a bouquet. Colors, cultures, foods, and experiences where no two are the same, yet somehow, they sync together beautifully in a small patch of land sitting on the Pacific. Unfortunately, unless you’re a backpacker fresh out of college, you’re typically not going to be able to have a couple months […]

Written by Terry Umphenour “Maximum depth will be eighteen meters and dive time will be fifty minutes. Gear up.” The dive briefing command sent 25 enthusiastic young divers from Concordia International Schools in Shanghai and Hanoi down to the dive platform on Manta Queen III’s dive deck. The students and their seven adult leaders had […]

A Surface Marker Buoy (SMB) or Delayed Surface Marker Buoy (DSMB), is an essential piece of kit, but it’s only in the last few years that training in their use has become a standard part of some entry-level courses. Many divers across a wide range of experience levels will therefore never have used one. To […]

Bird’s Eye View The Republic of Palau is an exquisite collection of over 700 volcanic islands, coral atolls, raised limestone islands and islets in the Caroline Islands, approximately seven degrees north of the equator. This secluded archipelago, which defines the western edge of Micronesia, is bounded by the North Pacific Ocean to the southeast and […]

From getting stuck in nets to eating plastic that they think is food, creatures worldwide are dying from material we made. BY NATASHA DALY Read this story and more in the June 2018 issue of National Geographic magazine. On a boat off Costa Rica, a biologist uses pliers from a Swiss army knife to try to extract a plastic straw from […]

Egypt has been a favorite of scuba divers for the better part of half a century, especially with its easy accessibility to the Red Sea, which runs along the entirety of Egypt’s eastern coastline. First brought to the world’s attention by Hans and Lotte Haas’ award-winning black-and-white documentary Abenteuer im Roten Meer (Adventures in the Red Sea) and […]