February 10, 2009

By Lindsay Key '11MFA

UNCW’s underwater ocean laboratory located in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary was recently featured in a promotional video posted on nytimes.com, The New York Times’ online news site. 

The video and accompanying article highlight Google Ocean, a new software system that allows browsers to explore what is happening below sea level across the world.  In the video, former NOAA chief scientist Sylvia Earle takes viewers on an electronic journey to her favorite diving spots, one being the Aquarius site, which she touts as “the only underwater laboratory in the world.”

The laboratory is deployed three and half miles offshore, at a depth of 60 feet, next to spectacular coral reefs. Scientists live in Aquarius during ten-day missions using saturation diving to study and explore our coastal ocean. During the missions, Aquarius offers three live streaming web cams as well as a blog updated by the Aquanauts.