Jacques Cousteau’s grandson Fabien will be following in the family footsteps and embarking upon a 31-day underwater mission.
Jacques Cousteau’s grandson Fabien will be following in the family footsteps and embarking upon a 31-day underwater mission.
His famous ocean-exploring granddad undertook a similar adventure in 1963, living 30 feet below the surface of the Red Sea for 30 days.
Fabien will be occupying the Aquarius, an underwater laboratory 63 feet deep off the coast of Key Largo, Florida.
"I am going to be taking a group of six people to live and work underwater in the world's only undersea marine laboratory." [Fabien Cousteau]
The team’s descent to the aquatic habitat has been named Mission 31.
Its purpose is twofold, with part of it being an opportunity to study the effects of climate change on ocean habitats.
They will also analyze how humans react psychologically to confined, under-the-sea living.
Cousteau is confident that the latter will result in information that’s valuable in a variety of settings, including those on both land and in space.
Training for the potentially dangerous dive is being taken very seriously, as the participants must make sure that their bodies retain enough nitrogen to sustain them throughout their stay.
If their mission is successful, by its end Cousteau and his team will have occupied the Aquarius for almost twice as long as any of its previous inhabitants.
