by Melanie Burgess

"The longing for the ice, the sadness of departure...it is as if I cannot after all bear to leave this bleak waste of ice, glaciers, cold, and toil..." - Ernest Shackleton (Arctic explorer 1874-1922)

Much like Ernest Shackleton, even scuba diving enthusiasts can't resist the pull to the icy waters of the Arctic. Most of us shudder at the thought of diving into frigid waters to have a look around, and race for the hot cocoa even considering diving into the sub-zero temperatures just for "fun." However, there are many scuba divers who do just that - they dive into the freezing cold water of the Arctic because they enjoy diving there.

Because the weather changes constantly, each scuba diving trip to the Antarctic is different. Every time you plan a trip to the Arctic, you can plan to head to a different place and experience new sights and diving memories. These trips are not all fun, though. Because of the cold, divers will have less manual dexterity, will consume more oxygen, and will expend more energy when diving. Be prepared to bring more equipment than you would bring to a warmer climate or dive location. For these reasons, more dive experience is required before attempting scuba diving in the Arctic. All divers should also practice with the heavier loads of dive gear before setting out on a dive to the Arctic.

by Joan Schroeder

Scuba diving can be viewed as a sort of extreme sport. It is a sport that takes you away from familiar territory - solid ground - and and allows you to experience the thrill of underwater diving and discovery. But as with any sport, there is the possibility of injuries to the participant. However, many of these injuries can be prevented or minimized if the proper gear and equipment is used and the diver is sufficiently trained to act and react appropriately when faced with a potential injury causing incident. Here are some ideas on how you can prevent a few of the more dangerous scuba diving injuries.

Wear appropriate scuba diving Gear for the specific water temperature: If you are diving in anything but the warmest of waters, do wear clothing that protects you from hypothermia. Water is more efficient than air at taking heat out of your body. Hypothermia is possible even in what you may consider "mild temperatures" Ensure that you wear wet suits or dry suits that are thermal insulated and acts to reduce the loss of heat from your body.