Diving Excellence in Antarctica – the four man Diving Team from the Ice Patrol Ship PROTECTOR have been inspecting wrecks and monitoring wildlife around the Palmer Archipelago and Deception Island in the icy waters of Antarctica.     This is about as extreme as diving gets – icebergs and snow and ice encrusted terrain as ‘jump off platforms’ and water temperatures typically hovering around 0˚C.

One of the wrecks is that of the sunken Argentine Research Bessel, the BAHIA PARAISO which ran aground near Janus Island in the Palmer Archipelago, a group of islands running almost parallel to the north west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula in 1989.    In doing so, the ship spilled more than 600,000 litres of diesel causing one of the worst marine environmental emergencies in Antarctica to date.   An Argentine and Dutch team carefully removed all traces of fuel, and the Dive Team from PROTECTOR asked to inspect the wreck to ensure there was no further leakage.

The Dive Team also explored a dormant water filled caldera volcano at Deception Island – which is one of only two in the world – and surfaced to a watching audience of penguins intrigued by their strange looking visitors.   While this risk assessment included exiting safely if there was any sign of volcanic activity, the divers were also warned of the dangers of killer whales and leopard seals as they explored icebergs on the peninsula.     After confirming the icebergs were grounded rather than floating, the dive team jumped into the waters to examine the mass of ice underneath.

The Patrol Continues