Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Europe's largest wreck is now open for divers
Up until recently diving on the Fu Shan Hai, Europe's largest wreck, was prohibited. Now though, after a project by Danish Technical Divers, the Danish Authorities have removed the ban.
The Chinese Bulk Carrier the Fu Shan Hai, and the Gdynia, collided on 31 May 2003 3 miles from Bornholm, Denmark.
After the collision, the Fu Shan Hai stayed afloat but the bow kept sinking as the hours went by. After the collision the master realised that the ship was in danger of sinking and he transmitted a MAYDAY distress signal. At around 1330 hours, the crew had abandoned the ship in two life boats.
At 2049 hours the same evening the Fu Shan Hai sank with a harmless cargo of fertiliser. She now rests at 68 meters. However the ship's heavy fuel oil created a hazard for the environment. In the months following the sinking, around 1460 tons of oil were removed.
After the clean up operation was completed the Danish Maritime Authority banned diving on the wreck. However, from 29 July to 5 August 2006 a group of Technical Divers were given permission to dive the wreck and document the condition. As a result of this the Danish Maritime Authority has lifted the ban.
For more information see the Fu Shan Hai Project
What do you think of this news item? Start a discussion.
--
Subscribe to SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) for more free news, articles, diving reports and marine life descriptions - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html
Labels: dive destination, wrecks
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
New book sheds light on more than 300 undiscovered wrecks
Nigel Pickford, bestselling author of Atlas of Shipwreck and Treasure, has just had his new book published by Chatham Publishing.
Lost Treasure Ships of the Northern Seas takes a closer look at some of the thousands of wrecks that still lie undiscovered in the relatively shallow waters of the North Sea and the Baltic, and identifies more than 300 such sites, giving concise details of ship, voyage, cargo and current state of knowledge. This represents a large proportion of the most valuable wrecks in the designated area. A significant proportion may be regarded as high-value - either in financial terms or because of their potential contribution to historical knowledge - but few have been precisely located.
The book contains a fascinating gazetteer of all these sites and offers a treasure-trove of information for divers and armchair adventurers.
In addition, there are fifteen chapters, each a case-study of a different wreck, chosen to illustrate the range of problems – and rewards – likely to be encountered when treasure hunting, and these offer invaluable lessons to divers. They include a wide variety of ship types, from a Roman trading vessel to a German liner sunk in the Baltic by the Russians in 1945.
Illustrated throughout in colour and black and white, this new book is a practical guide for divers, and offers a fascinating glimpse into the maritime history of a region where ships have fought and traded for thousands of years.
NIGEL PICKFORD is the author of four previous books, including the bestselling Atlas of Shipwreck and Treasure.
LOST TREASURE SHIPS OF THE NORTHERN SEAS: A Guide and Gazetteer to 2000 Years of Shipwreck is now available in bookshops, through the Chatham Publishing web site, from Amazon, or can be ordered by ‘phone on 020 8458 6314.
ISBN 978-1-86176-250-4, RRP £19.99.
What do you think of this news item? Start a discussion.
--
Subscribe to SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) for more free news, articles, diving reports and marine life descriptions - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html
Lost Treasure Ships of the Northern Seas takes a closer look at some of the thousands of wrecks that still lie undiscovered in the relatively shallow waters of the North Sea and the Baltic, and identifies more than 300 such sites, giving concise details of ship, voyage, cargo and current state of knowledge. This represents a large proportion of the most valuable wrecks in the designated area. A significant proportion may be regarded as high-value - either in financial terms or because of their potential contribution to historical knowledge - but few have been precisely located.The book contains a fascinating gazetteer of all these sites and offers a treasure-trove of information for divers and armchair adventurers.
In addition, there are fifteen chapters, each a case-study of a different wreck, chosen to illustrate the range of problems – and rewards – likely to be encountered when treasure hunting, and these offer invaluable lessons to divers. They include a wide variety of ship types, from a Roman trading vessel to a German liner sunk in the Baltic by the Russians in 1945.
Illustrated throughout in colour and black and white, this new book is a practical guide for divers, and offers a fascinating glimpse into the maritime history of a region where ships have fought and traded for thousands of years.
NIGEL PICKFORD is the author of four previous books, including the bestselling Atlas of Shipwreck and Treasure.
LOST TREASURE SHIPS OF THE NORTHERN SEAS: A Guide and Gazetteer to 2000 Years of Shipwreck is now available in bookshops, through the Chatham Publishing web site, from Amazon, or can be ordered by ‘phone on 020 8458 6314.
ISBN 978-1-86176-250-4, RRP £19.99.
What do you think of this news item? Start a discussion.
--
Subscribe to SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) for more free news, articles, diving reports and marine life descriptions - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html
Friday, March 09, 2007
Mexico Passes Shark Finning Ban
In a surprising move, the Mexican government has published sweeping new regulations and protections for sharks, including a shark finning ban, an extension of the moratorium on new commercial shark fishing permits, and extensive protections for great white sharks, whale sharks, basking sharks and manta rays.
"Mexico has taken a real leadership position here" says Patric Douglas CEO of Shark Diver (www.sharkdiver.com). "The rest of Latin America is watching what Mexico does with great interest now, this is good news indeed".
In the past few years Mexico has been recognized as one of the few places on the planet where large congregations of Great White sharks appear each year at Isla Guadalupe. Along with Whale shark aggregations in Holbox, destination tourism with these shark species and others is growing.
Captain Mike Lever owner of expedition dive vessel MV Nautilus Explorer was thrilled at the news "The people of Mexico afford us a great privilege in allowing us to dive with the white sharks at Guadalupe Island. The February 14th enactment of Mexican rules for responsible shark and ray fisheries is incredibly good news and really bodes well for the survival of these magnificent animals. Our hats are off to all of the scientists who helped make this happen".
The new rules and regulations came after 10 years of debate and the broad support of researchers, scientists, conservations groups, eco-tour operations and local citizens.
What do you think of this news item? Start a discussion.
--
Subscribe to SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) for more free news, articles, diving reports and marine life descriptions - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html
"Mexico has taken a real leadership position here" says Patric Douglas CEO of Shark Diver (www.sharkdiver.com). "The rest of Latin America is watching what Mexico does with great interest now, this is good news indeed".
In the past few years Mexico has been recognized as one of the few places on the planet where large congregations of Great White sharks appear each year at Isla Guadalupe. Along with Whale shark aggregations in Holbox, destination tourism with these shark species and others is growing.
Captain Mike Lever owner of expedition dive vessel MV Nautilus Explorer was thrilled at the news "The people of Mexico afford us a great privilege in allowing us to dive with the white sharks at Guadalupe Island. The February 14th enactment of Mexican rules for responsible shark and ray fisheries is incredibly good news and really bodes well for the survival of these magnificent animals. Our hats are off to all of the scientists who helped make this happen".
The new rules and regulations came after 10 years of debate and the broad support of researchers, scientists, conservations groups, eco-tour operations and local citizens.
What do you think of this news item? Start a discussion.
--
Subscribe to SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) for more free news, articles, diving reports and marine life descriptions - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html
Labels: environment, sealife, sharks
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Geometric Moray Eel is Creature of the Month
The Geometric moray has a long body with one continuous fin along its back. Like other morays it has elongated nostrils. You can easily recognise it by the dashed lines patterning its face, as shown in our photo.
Morays live in holes and generally hunt by night, locating
their prey by their excellent sense of smell. Moving with
snake-like motions, they are extremely quick. When at rest
you may see them rhythmically opening and closing their
mouths. They do this to maintain a respiratory current
past the gills.
The Geometric moray is the most common eel in the Red Sea.
It is also found throughout the Western Indian Ocean:
Madagascar, Mauritius, Oman, Mozambique, Seychelles,
South Africa, etc.
Quite small for a moray, the Geometric moray reaches
65 cm long. It lives at depths down to 40 m on coral and
rocky reefs. You may see groups of up to 10 young eels
sheltering in rock crevices.
The black dashes on the face and body of this moray mark
its pores. These are part of its lateral line system which
detects changes in pressure and so can be used to detect
movement and vibration in the surrounding water.
The Geometric moray, Siderea grisea is also known as the Grey Moray and Gymnothorax griseus.
What do you think of this news item? Start a discussion.
--
Subscribe to SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011) for more free news, articles, diving reports and marine life descriptions - http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/news.html
Labels: fish, marine biology, sealife
