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Underview of octopus arms featuring the suckers attached to the aquarium glass
Underview of octopus arms featuring the suckers attached to the aquarium glass

Arms all over

Don't compare them to the simple rubber suction cups on kids' toy dart guns; these have their own elaborate muscular regulatory mechanisms. This diagram illustrates the internal structure of a single octopus sucker.

There are two main regions, an infundibulum (IN) on the attachment face of the sucker, and a deeper chamber called the acetabulum (A) (if you don't recall any Latin, "infundibulum" just means "funnel", while "acetabulum" is "vinegar cup"â anatomy is littered with funnels and cup-shaped structures, so these are actually very generic names).

Built in 1978 and launched two years later, the frigate served Australia for 24 years before it was decomm
Built in 1978 and launched two years later, the frigate served Australia for 24 years before it was decomm

HMAS Canberra scuttled

Commercial clearance divers were expected to survey the wreck once it had settled later on Sunday to ensure all the charges had detonated.

Moorings will then be installed by Parks Victoria before the government opens the site for divers, in about a month's time.

Built in 1978 and launched two years later, the frigate served Australia for 24 years before it was decommissioned in 2005.

It served in the Middle East following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq in 1992 and helped evacuate Australians from Jakarta in 1998 during the student riots that deposed Indonesian president Suharto.

Orcas are full of PCBs

 

The chemicals cling to fat and can cause reproductive and immunological problems. While the researchers noted a slight decline in the level of PCBs over time, the chemical lingers on 30 years after it was banned,

Another recent publication predicted that problems from PCB contamination would plague the local orcas for at least 60 more years.

Jason Taylor

The Lost Correspondent, depth 7m, dimensions 140 x 43 cm.

Not all artificial reefs are shipwrecks or scuttled vessels, tanks or planes. Now divers can enjoy artificial reefs growing on original sculptures mounted underwater. Jason Taylor, a sculptor from England, recently finished a photo-documentation of his underwater sculpture project in Grenada. X-RAY MAG caught up with Taylor to find out how and why he did it.

The Red Sea ―Parted by Moses... Bridged by Islam

Erythra Thalassa—Red Sea, as directly translated from the ancient Greek name—is what it was called by the ancient Romans as well. Long has this great body of water been a focal point of trade in the Middle East, which has stood as a crossroads between Europe, Asia and Africa for many thousands of years. The Red Sea, today, is still an important vehicle of global trade as well as a major tourist destination for millions.

Mysteries of Egypt

Ballon drifts over the Nile valley

The sun was just greeting the day as I hurried to the top deck of our cruise boat with a steaming hot cup of coffee in one hand and a camera in the other. I was alone, enjoying the splender of another Egyptian morning. Wispy veils of fog danced across the Nile’s glassy surface, slowly dissipating as the sun’s rays enveloped the distant mountains and countryside.

Galapagos: Diving in a Darwinian World

“Sui Generis” is the most appropriate way I find to describe the Galapagos Islands. A place where the intruder is the human being. A place where many of its inhabitants are animals that exist only in this small piece of the world. A place where evolution seems to have been suspended at some moment in time. A place where we can feel like pioneers in each corner.

Thomas Peschak

Thomas P. Peschak is a marine biologist based at the University of Cape Town’s Marine Biology Research Institute, where he conducts scientific research on kelp forests, illegal fishing and the ecology of sea otters. He is an experienced field biologist and professional diver who has worked extensively in Africa, Central America, the Middle East and the South Pacific.

Michael Portelly

Journey Beneath a Coral Sea

I have been an underwater photographer and filmmaker for more than 25 years. I share the grave concerns of many who fear that our generation will bequeath future generations the legacy of a planet, poisoned and stripped of its assets and its beauty.