Capture of Screen / AFP
Every morning, in the last four months, German Rudiger Koch woke up in the face of unusual view: surrounded by fish and crustaceans that wandered among his underwater windows, 11 meters deep.
After 120 days, Koch became the person who managed to spend more time to live underwater, overcoming the 100 -day recordestablished in 2023 by the American Joseph Dituri.
The purpose of this 59 -year -old aerospace engineer was not just to hit the permanence record under water, but prove that “Living in the ocean is possible“And it can be a real alternative to humanity.
Koch made his feat near Puerto Lindo, in Caribbean Costa do Panamainside a submerged module that he himself designed and which, according to him, has already become the home of a diverse marine life.
“It was a quite spontaneous idea“Koch told BBC News during a conversation at his unusual residence just before the end of his underwater stay.
“My daughter was here, and I needed an extra bed, so I installed one in the underwater part, and we spent a lot of time down there. It was then that the idea of Dituri’s record“.
A 30 square meter habitat
Koch’s underwater “house” was about 30 square meterswith a vertical tube that connected the submerged housing to a floating structure on the surface.
Upstairs, he was part of his support team, as well as supplies and the communication system that kept him in contact with the outside world.
Although his unusual residence had a bed, internet (satellite), computer and even a stress -bikethe limitations were many – from the lack of a shower to the need to maintain constant monitoring of health and air quality.
“I have several sensors here, like CO2. I also measure temperature and moisture, and use a clock that constantly records my vital signs“Koch told BBC News, pointing to the devices that were in the enclosure.
Thus, Koch not only guaranteed his own security, but also generated data for researchers and experts interested in understanding the effects of a prolonged permanence at the bottom of the sea.
Between fish and corals
The six windows surrounding the capsule provided Koch a privileged view of marine life.
Koch said he spent several minutes a day observing fish cards and listening to incessant stalids of crustaceans and other animals that inhabit the structure and its surroundings.
“I can hear continuous stalids, who come from certain crustaceans capable of moving the tweezers so quickly that form a vacuum bubble. When they collapse, there is a very high sound, almost like a whip, ”he told BBC News.
This noise, almost imperceptible for those who are not submerged for long, reminded him that his presence also favors formation of an artificial reef: The external surface of the habitat is popular with algae, corals and other marine creatures that enjoy the structure as a refuge.
Koch was not alone in this adventure. Had a support team which worked on the other above the chamber to provide food and monitor vital aspects, such as energy supply and weather conditions.
In addition, it was supported by other people linked to currents of thought that promote the so -called “ocean colonization“Movement known as Seasteading.
For them, Koch’s experience is not just the search for a new record – but a first step in demonstrating the feasibility of establishing stable communities in the high sea.
“I am being monitored as a ‘control’ about what Dituri, who has lived 100 days submerged in a pressurized environment, did,” Koch said, referring to the American researcher who has so far had the world record of spending more submerged time.
“The difference is that I am subject to Water pressure at an environmentwithout having to use diving equipment to get in and out of the module. ”
Dituri hit the record of stay in a underwater habitat pressurized in 2023, when he spent 100 days under water in Florida, United States.
Routine and challenges
Koch spent most of the time perform technical testsrecord videos and take care of everyday subjects remotely, thanks to the connection to the internet.
He acknowledged that one of the biggest challenges was dealing with moisture and tight space, as well as absence of a shower under normal conditions.
Although it kept visual contact with their visitors when they descended to see him, and continuous communication with his team through the upper capsule, Koch admitted that the Experience was lonely.
Nevertheless, he believes he was able to turn his stay under the sea into a kind of “everyday life.”
How and «told the BBC I would do, the first thing he did when leaving the structure on January 24 was“Smoking a cigar of victory“.
“After that, I want to take a good dive and of course, take a real bath“, These.
For many, what Koch did is unusual; But for him, it is a demonstration that the limit between the surface and the bottom of the sea It is not so insurmountable How could one imagine.
“It’s another step to understand that humans can inhabit new environments,” he said.
“What we want to show is that Oceans are a viable environment For human expansion, ”he added, with the conviction that this type of project can multiply in the future, and that communities at sea can offer solutions to space and resources on the earth’s surface.
