11. How deep has a skin diver gone? 



The greatest depth to which a diver has ever descended without a 

 pressure suit was reached in December 1962 when Hannes Keller, a 

 Swiss mathematician, and Peter Small, a British journalist, descended 

 to 1,000 feet in an open diving bell. At that depth, Keller swam outside 



for 3 minutes. He breathed a secret mixture of gases which was based 

 on his own computations of what the human system requires and can 

 tolerate; he also computed the decompression stages for the diver. Un- 

 fortunately, Small and another diver died during this attempt. 



The deepest dive without breathing aids, mask, or fins was made in 

 February 1967 by Robert Croft, a U. S. Navy submarine escape instruc- 

 tor. He carried a 29-pound weight and reached a depth of 212.7 feet. 

 His unusual ability can be attributed to the fact that he had rickets in 

 his childhood, which resulted in a flexible rib cage and a lung capacity 

 about twice the normal. 



Dugan, James and Richard Vahan (Ed.) 



Men Under Water, Chilton Books, 1965. 

 Link Edwin A. 



"Tonnorrow on the Deep Frontier," National Geographic, Vol. 125, 



No. 6, June, 1964. 

 Miller, Robert C. 



The Sea, Random House, 1966. 



11 



