AQUANAUT TRAINING DAY 5: NAVY'S FASHION ADVICE

Today we started promptly at "eight hundred," as the Navy divers say, and headed back to Aquarius with the Kirby Morgan diving helmets. It's our last of training day in the helmets, so we all should be very comfortable in them. The plan is to dive in pairs back to Aquarius for 30 minutes each. My goals today were to trim my weight just right so I'd be neutrally buoyant on the seafloor, practice climbing around the habitat underwater without flippers, get used to keeping my head back (with the heavy 30lbs helmet) underwater so I'm more balanced and air doesn't leak from the neck seal, and to be conscious of the umbilical cord so it doesn't get tangled or caught too often. I also need to remember to speak clearly in the communication device inside the helmet. Interestingly, the communications system filters out (to an extent) high-pitch background noises and sometimes Liz and my voices reach just that high-pitch frequency so they get cut off. It's not a major issue; if I don't hear a response I'll just repeat my message, but still it's something to be aware of. 

The empty dive vest and tank in the center is for the stand-by diver; every time we go on a training dive, a Navy diver sits there, ready to get in the water at any moment for an emergency. Heading to Aquarius on the boat, left to right: Carter (Navy diver), Adam (aquanaut), Liz (aquanaut), Andy (aquanaut), me (aquanaut), and Hunter (Navy diver). Photo credit to Fabien Cousteau.

Welcome "Back" to Aquarius 

That buoy/power control tower floats directly above Aquarius, the underwater research habitat and marks the spot.

No filter! The water was just this clear and gorgeous. See those faint shimmery squiggles in the water? Those are barracuda.

I felt like a superhero being "weightless" underwater, jumping up and over the Aquarius habitat, which is like jumping over a two story building. I also took off my flippers and walked on the edge of the habitat like a tightrope walker. The Bonnet Rogue SCUBA divers caught my ballet "acrobatics" on video, but that footage won't come out until later! It turned out that I didn't need any added weight to reach neutral buoyancy on the seafloor. I also felt like I got the hang of swimming with the extra 30lbs on my head.  

I stared eye-to-eye with a barracuda for what seemed like a few minutes. They are a fearsome-looking fish, known for their scary appearance and teeth, but getting scared is one of the worst things you can do underwater because you might hyperventilate, lose control of your buoyancy, etc. Besides, barracuda will only bite if you look/smell like a fish. With bubbles streaming out of my Kirby Morgan and a tank strapped to my back, I don't look like a fish. 

Instagram updates from the dive today. Beautiful!

The neck seal on the dive helmet is pulling on some of my (long) hair, so I need to be better braiding it out of the way. One of the Navy divers, however, recommended that I go for a 2 mm buzz cut ... that's not happening. I'm not ready to take fashion advice from the Navy.

Mission31 custom GoPro kits from Backscatter. Photo credit Changing Tides Media.

Look at those teeth! A barracuda and I had a staring contest around Aquarius today.

Afternoon Outreach

After training, Adam, Liz and I visited the local Montessori school's science night to tell them about Aquarius. We showed them the model of Aquarius with a LEGO aquanaut and let them try some freeze dried foods we'll be eating underwater (think astronaut food). It was so fun! Many of the kids were familiar with Aquarius because it's basically in their backyard. 

Students tasted freeze dried food that we'll eat in the underwater habitat.

Friday science outreach. LEGO auquanaut on the Aquarius model.

This lucky girl got to try on a dive helmet with Adam at the outreach event today. Aww...

A Good End to the Week 

Before dinner with the crew this evening, we took a group photo with all the aquanauts, wearing our new gear from Oceanic. Also, Fabien brought us together for a surprise gift... He loaned us each limited edition Mission 31 DOXA watches! 

Orange is the new black. Doxa limited edition Mission 31 dive watches.

Next week is the final week of training. We'll focus on SCUBA and the details of Aquarius, and a Navy doctor will pull each of us aside for a final check to make sure we are fit for saturation. Safety is of paramount importance, so it's still possible any of us could fail the final check and not be allowed to saturate. Astronaut Ken Mattingly learned 3 days before Apollo 13's launch that he would not go because he was exposed to measles. If any of us for any reason is no longer able to saturate we could still aid the operation and research from topside, and even SCUBA dive down like other support divers. 

Saturday we'll be up early to review Mission 31 science research plans!