Dive Site Friday!

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Each Friday, I’ll be posting some of the greatest dive sites in the WORLD. If you have any suggestions, please add them to the comments below!

Today’s site: Adelaide, Australia

School of Fish in Adelaide, Australia

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK, so according to my source, Adelaide has great underwater diving sites. Some of them are:

  • Rapid Bay Jetty – known as the best dive site in south Australia;
  • Edithburgh Jetty- great shore dive with colorful pilings, sea horses, and leafy sea dragons;
  • wreck of the HMAS Hobart;
  • Kangaroo Island;
  • Bluff at Victor Harbor
  • Whyalla – known for its great dives during cuttlefish mating season, which runs from July to September.

Be ready to see:

  • leafy dragons,
  • cuttlefish,
  • fur seals
  • sea horses
  • Port Jackson sharks.

Researchers Focus on Soft Corals of Kimberley Region

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The Queensland museum documented their expedition to the Kimberley region in online diaries, documenting their research on the unique soft corals that are found there and few other places on the planet. Most of the soft corals are found in the Adele region. The site, found here, is part of the Western Museum of Australia, and focuses on several marine regions.

Photo by Monika Schlacher, Copyright Western Australia Museum

Ocean Pollution Worse than Previously Thought

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Bolsa Chica Beach

Bolsa Chica Beach, California, Has Been Voted one of the Cleanest Beaches.

By: Alyson Cunningham

The profusion of plastic bottles and trash in the Pacific Ocean is well documented: according to some reports, it is the size of the state of Texas in the United States. This trash is not only an eyesore: more importantly, its not biodegradable, and will be there for hundreds

, if not thousands, of years. What is even more upsetting, though, is while it was well known that the waste washed ashore and floated on the surface, the debris is now well disbursed through the water column. This is because of natural forces, like drag and the force of wind and waves. Scientists are concerned because small coral communities are forming on the debris, changing the chemistry of the water and blocking sunlight. Also, as this material is ingested at the bottom of the food chain, its effects will be magnified as it travels up the food chain, slowly poisoning whole systems. The point: just because we may not see it on the surface doesn’t mean it’s not there.

Source:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/30/ocean-pollution-plastic_n_1465293.html

Really Simple Underwater Photography Resource

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I came across this really simple page on the basics of underwater photography, and understanding over-under technique. Stephen Frink is a world-renown underwater photographer, and has listed some excellent tips for capturing underwater images. Its a great resource for those of you just starting out!

http://www.stephenfrink.com/sf-tips/overunder/

NASA Uses Visualization Studio to Capture Global Ocean Currents

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NASA has developed a visualization studio that displays thousands of ocean currents in a 20 minute tour format.  The visualization software was created by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, US, and is also available in an iPad app. The tour shows currents from June 2005 to December 2007, and is actually an numerical model of observed data. Created by NASA’s project, Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean (ECCO), the tour is used to measure the ocean’s role in the global carbon cycle,  to understand the evolution of the polar oceans, and to monitor climate change.  A similar site is found at the Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology, which shows the movement and temperature of offshore water.

 

Reference:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NASA_Views_Our_Perpetual_Ocean_999.html

Protect Our Coral Sea – Underwater Photographer Xanthe Rivett to Speak at ODEX

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Australian underwater photographer Xanthe Rivett will be speaking at the Oceania Dive and Ecotourism Expo this Saturday 8th October.  Xanthe will be speaking on the case for protecting Australia’s Coral Sea, and creating an ocean legacy for future generations.

Protecting the Coral Sea – an ocean legacy for the future

Topic Overview:

Over 40 years ago a controversial group were proposing we protect the entire Great Barrier Reef.  In hindsight it is easy to reflect on the wisdom of that decision, however it was a battle that took several years and was hard fought.  Skip forward to 2011 and Australia is considering the creation of a new icon – the proposed Coral Sea Marine Park.
The proposed Coral Sea Marine Park extends from the eastern boundary of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park to the edge of Australia’s territorial waters with Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and New Caledonia.  In 2009 it was declared a Coral Sea Conservation Zone by the Australian Government.
In this vast area there are habitats as diverse as: coral reefs, sandy cays, underwater mountains, deep-sea canyons, four large plateaux and a vast abyssal plain.  It is also steeped in history. This talk will give a brief overview of the area covered by the Coral Sea Conservation Zone and the why it is important to give it a high level of protection.

Points covered will include:

  • The Geography and biological features of the Coral Sea Conservation Zone
  • Who is the Protect Our Coral Sea campaign and what do they want to achieve?
  • What is the significance of the Coral Sea, locally and in a global context?
  • Can protection work for highly migratory pelagic species?

 

Xanthe Rivett

Biography:

Xanthe is an underwater photographer and videographer who has been diving over half her life. After studying Marine Biology Xanthe travelled extensively, before returning to Australia to work in the dive industry.  Xanthe’s work has appeared in numerous Australian and international publications and has been displayed at various art galleries and the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney.  In 2011 Xanthe is also working with Protect Our Coral Sea to raise awareness for the proposed Coral Sea Marine Park.

http://www.protectourcoralsea.org.au

http://www.xantherivett.com

Oceania Dive & Ecotourism Expo

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Ocean Dive and Ecotourism Expo

The Oceania Dive & Ecotourism Expo (ODEX) is a spring consumer and trade show that is co-hosted with Blue Edge, an international freediving and spearfishing symposium and the 5th annual Underwater Festival.

This event will be a family friendly 3-day extravaganza of product showcases, media launches and seminars relating to scuba diving, water sports, sustainable and adventure travel, underwater imaging, freediving, spearfishing, and marine conservation

Other Special Features Include:

• International Dive & Ecotourism Travel Hall • Marine Science and Conservation Hubs • More than 40 Seminar Presentations  • Cosplay@ODEX Competition • Lucky Door Prizes • Social and Networking events • Underwater Festival  Top 100 image display  and much more.

Where:

Avenues 8/ 9/ 10 /11 RNA Showgrounds.

Located just 3km from the CBD, 1km from Fortitude Valley and en -route to the Brisbane Airport and Gold and Sunshine Coasts, the Avenues consist of a series of interconnecting buildings situated in a veritable  boulevard of landscaped gardens and paved walkways that extends along Alexandria Street.

For more information see www.rnashowgrounds.com.au