ADDING TELESCOPING SECTIONS TO THE BASE PIPE 



After the forty- eight base pipes were emplaced, each 

 third pipe was buoyed to provide the support boat with a 

 visual guide of the array. The telescoping sections which 

 form the upper part of the stanchions were bolted together 

 and a float attached at the top of the upper section so they 

 would settle to the bottom in a vertical position. The size 

 of the float permitted a slight negative buoyancy to the sec- 

 tions which facilitated handling by the divers. These sections 

 were dropped as close as possible to the surface-buoyed base 

 pipes and the divers guided them down and inserted them in 

 the base sections. The divers removed the float, surfaced, 

 and moved to the next position, repeating this operation until 

 the array was completed. 



DIVING PROCEDURES 



Because of the long, strenuous bottom time required 

 during the installation of the base sections, a surface- 

 supplied air source was utilized. A low-pressure compres- 

 sor with two 300-foot diving hoses, located on the stern of 

 the support boat (a 50-foot Navy utility boat), provided two 

 divers with a wide working radius. Ninety minutes' bot- 

 tom time was considered optimum for the project, since it 

 eliminated the necessity of two decompression stops. On 

 one dive of this duration, two divers could install three 

 base pipes and measure a fourth. Divers completing a tour 

 on the bottom would ascend to a stage suspended at a 10- 

 foot depth from the support boat, and after proper decom- 

 pression, surface to become tenders for the next pair to go 

 down. After six or seven pipe installations, all work on 

 the bottom ceased as the support boat moved to a new posi- 

 tion. A buoy attached to the tripod served as a permanent 

 guide to the area in work. 



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