X-Ray Mag

February 2020

Interview with Andrea Donati: Pioneering Technical Diving on Ponza for 30 Years

Words
Peter Symes
Images
Peter Symes
Andrea Donati, owner of Ponza Diving Center, which this year marks 30 years of instruction and service for technical divers on Ponza Island in Italy
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In my line of work as a dive industry professional, I attend a lot of dive shows and get to meet a lot of people, most of them nice and interesting in various ways. It was also at a dive show in Italy, many years ago, that I first met Andrea Donati and his partner, Daniela Spaziani, of Ponza Diving.

Buddy Dive Bonaire Presents Boat Dive Mania

4 years ago By Matthew Meier
Of course, there are the 26 dive sites on Klein Bonaire that you absolutely cannot skip when you are diving on Bonaire. The small uninhabited island in front of the West coast of Bonaire is a must see when you visit Bonaire. While on land there is not much to see, as soon as you go below the surface you won’t believe your eyes. Since nobody lives on the island and the people who visit are there for snorkeling or sunbathing, the reef is untouched and full of live. All around the island you can find a gorgeous sloping reef with a wide range of hard and soft corals.

Hospital Ships: Casualties of WWI

Words
Steve Jones
Images
Steve Jones
Lanfranc is a huge wreck that needs several dives to fully appreciate. Photo by Steve Jones.
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In World War I, unrestricted warfare meant ships that were traditionally off limits became targets for surprise attacks by German U-boats. Steve Jones visits two of the most endearing wrecks in the English Channel that were a direct result of this highly controversial policy.

“... and the exits are located two at the front, two over the wings and two in the rear. Please take a look around you to locate the nearest exit, bearing in mind that the closest one may be behind you.”

Pay attention to briefings

4 years ago By Peter Symes

The international dive community was shocked and grief-stricken when the news broke of the devastating fire that consumed the award-winning California-based liveaboard Conception and the 34 people who perished, including divers and crew members. The accident struck close to home, as many of us have taken dive trips on liveaboards at some point. Some among us had even been on that particular vessel.

Acropora hyacinthus, thought to be a single species, is potentially five different species—some with a very limited geographical range.

New coral species discovered along the Great Barrier Reef

4 years ago By Main minion

Scientists from Queensland Museum (QM), University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia completed a 21-day trip from the Capricorn Bunkers off Gladstone to Thursday Island in the Torres Strait late last year. Scientists discovered dozens of new coral species on a recent voyage along the length of the Great Barrier Reef.

“On almost every dive we were finding species that aren’t in the books"

Professor Andrew Baird, James Cook University

Gray whale spyhopping off the Alaskan coast
Gray whale spyhopping off the Alaskan coast

Solar storms can mess with a whale's GPS

4 years ago By Annie Won

After studying 186 live strandings of healthy gray whales from 1985 to 2018, researchers at Duke University concluded that whales' navigational sense is affected by solar storms taking place as far away as our sun.

The researchers based their findings on the fact that the strandings are more likely to occur on days when there are more sunspots. Linked to solar storms, sunspots represent sudden releases of high-energy particles from the sun. These may disrupt magnetic orientation behaviour when they interact with the Earth’s magnetosphere.