Day seven already? This is my first saturation mission and I have already experienced a great number of new experiences. Living under the sea has always been a fantasy for me. Now I am living that fantasy.

Living in saturation is not so different than other experiences I have had in my career. For four years I spent a better amount of my time living on a fast attack, I-class submarine out of Groton, CT. The boat was the USS San Juan (SSN-751). I operated and maintained the nuclear propulsion system with an elite group of sailors who were extremely dedicated to their work. Here at NURC/UNCW (National Undersea Research Center at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington) I am fortunate to once again work with people who operate at the highest professional standards.

This job sounds like a lot fun to outsiders. I should know, I was one just three short months ago. As matter of fact it is a lot of fun. This does not mean that making these missions happen is easy. On a daily basis we are faced with challenges that would be quick and easy to fix in most other arenas. Here the weather, humidity, salt water, increased pressure, and location of the systems makes simple tasks much more difficult to overcome. Simple things like changing outside lights require a lot more work. How many NURC divers does it take to change a light bulb? At least three. One to drive the boat and two to scuba dive to retrieve it. Divers go in teams of at least two.

There are many differences between working here on Aquarius and working in the world of fast attack submarines. First, and this is really a big deal when you're underwater for 10 days, we have windows to the sea and access to the water all of the time. The space is confining inside the habitat, but with all of the windows and the hours of diving you hardly notice the small inside space. Also, in Aquarius we have access to the internet and phones to the outside world. This is a luxury the hard working sailors in the submarine force do not get. It is definitely difficult to separate from the rest of the world at times, but also satisfying to be able to get away from the "real world" for awhile and live in this underwater realm.

The reef life is so different from the world most of us are use to living in on a daily basis. Here it's like living in a fantasy world full of bright colors and mystical creatures. Just the other day when I was stretching my legs after doing preservation work on the habitat, I watched six large permit dancing in the sand. So large and powerful, yet graceful in their movements as they danced in a big circle hardly taking notice of me standing not more than two feet away. As I watched, an Atlantic stingray flew past me in a gentle glide towards the habitat. I watched him disappear into the mist of the water column and when I turned back around the permit had disappeared. Heading back to the habitat to check in, I saw a black grouper at a cleaning station getting a once over by the hard working occupants. The grouper does not stay long so I took a turn having my nails cleaned. This was a new experience for me. It tickled a little, but was definitely a unique experience.

Every day working here brings new and exciting experiences and challenges. I look forward to every day in anticipation of what will come next. Just this morning our friends the tarpon have returned to pay us a visit. The first time this mission. Three days left? What will happen tomorrow? Who Knows?