Undercurrent Online Update
for Subscribers

For Subscriber David Denson Whiteside (with username 'dwhitesi' exp: 2024-08-20', at dwhite95815@hotmail.com )
October 23, 2012

It's recalling 4,000 of its $1,200 Cobalt units in the U.S. and 200 in Canada, which were sold between November 2010 and July 2012. The computer can leak, causing the lens to blow off suddenly, which can result in impact injuries and a breathing gas leak. Atomic has received 23 reports -- but no injuries -- of the lens being forcefully expelled, due to excess air pressure inside the computer. For details on the recalled products and what to do if you own one, go to www.atomicaquatics.com

According to a new study by the travel booking website Kayak, the average fare for a domestic flight is $370 over a six-month period before departure, but that drops to $342 when booked 21 days before. For international flights, the lowest fare can be booked 34 days before departure, when the average price is $977, compared with $1,016 for the six-month period before takeoff. For domestic trips longer than a week, you can save as much as 10 percent by leaving on a Tuesday and returning on a Wednesday. Book the same weekdays for international flights and you'll save 21 percent; you can save 9 percent if you leave on a Saturday and return on a Sunday.

With a list price of $250 and a weight of 14 lbs., this will probably be the most expensive piece of literature you've ever bought, but the price and the poundage will be worth it to add this three-volume set to your library. Marine biologists Gerald R. Allen and Mark V. Erdman have combined 60 years of surveys, fieldwork and research to create the most definitive guide of the Coral Triangle to date, perhaps forever. It includes 3,600 photographs, 40 percent of which are of fish not seen before in print. For a sampler, check out pictures of 25 of the newly-discovered reef fish species at National Geographic's website , then buy the three volumes from us at www.undercurrent.org/UCnow/bookpicks.shtml

What goes into your wetsuit, and why it costs what it does . . . can dive shops turn you away if you don't buy gear from them? . . . our readers' advice about diving again after a major medical procedure . . . details about life insurance plans geared toward scuba divers . . . can scuba diving really burn 400 calories per hour? . . . and much more.

In the search for great underwater adventure writing, look no further than this absorbing new book by John Bantin, one of Undercurrent's top-notch contributors. He has compiled dozens of true tales that will intrigue and delight everyone from the seasoned diver to the bathtub snorkeler. Consider the British diver who barely survived a crocodile attack while diving from an Indonesia liveaboard, or the divers fired upon by the military when diving in the Red Sea. Bantin, who makes 300 dives a year, gets behind the scenes of terrible tragedies, applies his great wit to his own travels and travails, and explores unusual and bizarre behaviors both animal, fish and human that take place a few fathoms down. Order his book through our "Books" page , and you'll get Amazon's best price - plus our profits will go to save coral reefs.

Reefmaker, an artificial reef company in Orange Beach, AL, will be the star of Reef Wranglers, a new show premiering on the Weather Channel October 23 at 9 p.m. ET. The reality show will "combine the dangers of reef-making with comedy," following Reefmaker owner David Walter and his family as they sink everything from a Vietnam-era plane to a local shrimp boat to create artificial reefs while battling tough conditions in the Gulf of Mexico.

Either during a full or a new moon, when they're more likely to gather, say scientists at the University of Queensland. While studying manta rays that were foraging for food, cruising and being cleaned by smaller fish at Lady Elliott Island in the Great Barrier Reef, the researchers found the number of rays was higher in Australia's autumn and winter months (which is spring and summertime for us Yanks), around the new and full moons, and when wind speeds were lower. The scientists, whose study was published in the journal PLOS ONE, believe their results can be applied to understand the distribution of manta ray populations around the world.

You can now take a virtual dive there, thanks to Google Street View. Google teamed up with scientists at the Catlin Seaview Survey to stitch together thousands of images from Australia's Great Barrier Reef and Hawaiian Islands dive sites into 360-degree panoramas, available to see on Google Maps' Street View feature. Check out all the panoramas, from Australia's Heron Island to Maui's Molokini Crater, at here

The resort is listed with an agent in New Zealand. Check out here . Tom Moody wants to sell the island and resort after 30 years, although he still has 68 years left on his lease. Ninety percent of the 107 acres can't be developed.

The Philippines' Tubbataha Reef, southeast of Palawan, was recently recognized by the World Future Council as a model in coral reef conservation. The Council gave one of two Silver Awards for sustainable ocean management (the other went to Namibia, the gold went to Palau) to the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park Act, the measure that created a 385 square-mile marine sanctuary and was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. "Tubbataha has demonstrated that with carefully planned management, local communities need not bear the burden of closed protected areas, but can be their primary beneficiaries," the Council's statement read. "As a nursery site for fish, the reef supports local artisanal fisheries."

Malaysian newspapers are reporting that illegal dynamite fishing is happening near Sipadan Island. A boat operator told the Daily Express he's hearing fish bombs set off at night near Sipadan Island, and that the illegal activities were "rampant" in the past month. The Star quoted an unnamed diver who claimed to see hundreds of dead triggerfish and surgeonfish, and a hawksbill turtle in a scene of sizeable destruction at the Eel Garden dive site near Mabul Island, separated from Sipadan by a 15-minute boat ride. Randy Davies, a founder of Borneo Divers, told the Daily Express he doubts fish bombing is happening at Sipadan because the deep, plunging walls only sink bombed fish to a virtually bottomless sea, "but we don't know for sure until we get more facts on hand." We'll have our own travel report in a future issue.

Helen Newman, founder of the British nonprofit Sea Sanctuaries Trust, has this special offer for our readers: "With the arrival of the KM Hang Tuah loaned to us as a floating ranger station and survey platform in Raja Ampat, we're able to take a few volunteer divers on conservation expeditions this November and December, and offer 30 percent off our 25-day or 50-day programs. You'll assist in collecting vital baseline data, monitor changes in fish and coral, and work in our social development programs with the local communities. You'll spend time on the liveaboard Hang Tuah, as well as in a basic homestay in a villages while working with the local community. You can expect to take at least 30 dives plus manta tows during your stay. Conditions are basic, the area is remote, and you'll be expected to assist with cooking, cleaning, filling tanks and other activities related to the operation. Discounts are available for volunteers with additional qualifications, such as in medicine or education." Prices are $3,500 and $6,000 for 50 days, and include round-trip transfers from Sorong, food, accommodation and diving. Note: Because Sea Sanctuaries is not a U.S.-based nonprofit, you can't deduct trip expenses on your trip. For more information, go to here or contact Helen Newman at helen@seasanctuaries.org

Ben Davison, editor/publisher

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