X-Ray Mag #48
Komodo Island; Orcas of Valdes in Patagonia; Madeira oceanic archipelago; Bali's Liberty wreck; Why switch to rebreathers, with Mark Powell; Cavern training, with Alan Purcell; It's raining sharks in French Polynesia, with Andy Murch; Shipwrecks 2012 report; Island Biogeography; Night photography, with Lawson Wood; Andorra: At high altitude in the Pyrenees; Plus news and discoveries, equipment and training news, books and media, underwater photo and video equipment, turtle news, shark tales, whale tales and much more..
Pipe ghostfish
Main features in this issue include:
A primer on Island Biogeography
— And the common feaures of decommissioned oil rigs, windfarms, wrecks and artificial reefs
What matters is the physical presence of substantial objects on an otherwise featureless seabed.
Komodo - Indonesia’s Dragon Isle
Komodo Island kept bobbing in and out of my field of vision as we continued to circle in water that was churning. I could almost see the Pacific colliding with the Indian Ocean. Ali, one of the many talented dive guides from the luxury liveaboard Arenui, popped up from the depths and shouted, “The current is going off!”
We were here because when two oceans meet, there is magic to behold. The cool, nutrient rich waters of the Pacific combine with the warm shallow waters of the Indian Ocean are the perfect recipe for thriving life and diversity.
Orcas of Valdes
Red Sea Safari: Journey from Cairo to El Quseir
In spite of Egypt’s current turmoil, I feel this exceptional country is still a place of interest and worth while including in anyone’s holiday itinerary. I recall enjoying the opportunity to tour many of the countries monuments, museums and being able to touch one of the huge pyramids that have surpassed the adversity of historical challenges.
When I found out I would be traveling to Egypt for three weeks in June, I immediately began making regular visits to a local sauna to prepare my body to withstand the heat for which northern Africa is famous.
The Oceanic Archipelago of Madeira
The oceanic archipelago of Madeira lies approximately 1,000km southwest of Lisbon, right in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Located between latitude 30° and 33°N, quite close to the Strait of Gibraltar almost the same as Casablanca (Morocco).
Geographically, located in a subtropical region and conditioned by the southerly branches of the Gulf Stream, the archipelago has moderate climate all year round, with no great yearly thermal amplitudes.