Undercurrent Online Update
for Subscribers

For Subscriber David Denson Whiteside (with username 'dwhitesi' exp: 2024-08-20', at dwhite95815@hotmail.com )
September 18, 2014

Scubapro announced a recall of 204 Aladin Square dive computers, sold between March and June, because they pose a risk of decompression sickness to divers using them. After receiving four reports that the computers leaked and stopped working, Scubapro determined that there was fiber contamination on some circuit boards used in a single production lot (they say there have been no accidents or injuries). Aladin Square computers with serial numbers ending in 003 should go back to an authorized Scubapro dealer for a free replacement. The serial number is stamped in white on the back of the computer, and printed on labels affixed to the back and side of the packaging. For more information, go here http://www.scubapro.com/en-US/USA/consumer-alerts.aspx, or call (877) 467-6675.

While on a cruise aboard Royal Caribbean earlier this year, subscriber Jon Cheris (Wellsville, PA) learned that that the cruise line has maximum age and weight restrictions for booking dive trips. "The cruise line will not let you book if you are too 'old,' he wrote us. "Their maximum age limit ranges from 60 to 80, depending upon the country." So that got us wondering - are there dive operators that discriminate, consciously or not, against senior divers? Have you had an experience with a dive boat or resort that made you feel "too old?" If so, what happened, and what did you do about it? Send me your stories at EditorBenD@undercurrent.org

Our undercover travelin' divers review diving in the Red Sea, Indonesia, Fiji and more . . . a new device to make freediving safer . . . why you should research weather conditions before you book a dive trip . . . more of John Bantin's advice on picking the right liveaboard for your needs . . . should a diver's certification certificate last forever?. . . and much more.

We're gathering reader reports for our 2015 Travelin' Divers Chapbook (get this year's edition here), so send us your reviews of dive operators, liveaboards and resorts you've visited this year. Complete the online form here . You can also follow the link "File a Report" on the left side of our homepage ( http://www.undercurrent.org ).

The Pacific Northwest Underwater Photographic Society wants to hear from you. We got an e-mail from the society's chief, Dan Clements, who wrote, "We have been contacted by a company interested in purchasing photos or videos of albacore and/or skipjack tuna. If you have in-water images of these fast-moving fish contact me at dan@e-Clements.com, and we will put you in touch with the company doing this project."

Solomon Island Dive Expeditions (SIDE) just launched the MV Solomon Star, a recentlyrefitted, steel-hulled catamaran, and is scheduling trips to the Florida Islands, Russell Islands and exploratory trips throughout the Central Province of Solomon Islands. Prices for a seven-night expedition start from $2,415, but SIDE is offering savings of up to $600 for the remainder of its 2014 trips. For more details, visit http://www.solomonsdiving.com . Should you book a trip, please file a reader report so we can share it with your fellow subscribers.

"Scuba diving is like driving a four-by-four through the woods, without your widows up, air conditioning on, music blasting . . . You're not only removed from the environment, you're disrupting it." When writer James Nestor heard this from a freediving researcher, he didn't disagree. So he overcame his fear of freediving, learned to go long and deep, and produced a fine new book, Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Oceans Tells Us about Ourselves, that any active or armchair scuba diver will surely relish. Nestor, a fine journalist (he has written for Outside, Men's Journal and the New York Times) with a keen eye, has produced the best underwater-focused book since Shadow Divers a decade ago. It's a fine adventure, and a thrilling ride all the way from the surface down to 28,000 feet, and back. Order it through us and you'll get Amazon's best price -- and our profits will go to save coral reefs.

Just take a look at the Florida Keys. Late-summer water temperatures there were warmer by nearly two degrees Fahrenheit in the last several decades compared to a century earlier, according to a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey. "Our analysis shows that corals in the study areas are now regularly experiencing temperatures above 84 degrees during July, August and September; average temperatures that were seldom reached 120 years ago," said Ilsa Kuffner, the study's lead author. "When corals are exposed to water temperatures above 84 degrees, they grow more slowly and, during extended exposure periods, can stop growing altogether or die." The study indicates that August is consistently the month when Florida's ocean temperatures peak.

Ben Davison, editor/publisher
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