Investigating how spending 100 days underwater affects the human body and mind - A courageous scientist’s intriguing experiment

Photograph of Joseph Dituri in his underwater lodge, Source: NPR

It should be of no surprise that human beings still know close to nothing about the ocean — Over 80% of our ocean remains unmapped and unexplored. This is mostly due to the immense amount of water pressure capable of crushing human bones, barring even the most experienced divers. However, part of this is also due to the time we can spend underwater. The longest time a human being has spent underwater used to be 73 days — Held by two Tennessee educators in 2014. However, that record has recently been surpassed by American University Researcher Joseph Dituri.

Former American Scientist Joesph Dituri has committed to the arduous task of spending 100 days underwater and has recently surpassed the world record, reaching 77 total days on May 16th.

Dituri, 55, was a United States Navy diving officer for 28 years before retiring in 2012 and becoming a professor at the University of South Florida. Dituri is attempting to break the world record for the longest time, living in a fixed underwater habitat, aptly naming the mission “Project Neptune 100.” by living in a 9.3 square meter lodge 22 feet underwater in Key Largo, Florida.

Floor plan of Dituri’s underwater lodge, Photo: Jules’ Undersea Lodge

To keep himself busy in his underwater abode, Dituri conducts various experiments on the effects of being underwater on Human Physiology. Dituri undergoes blood, urine, saliva, and brain function regularly testing to understand the impact of living in such an inhospitable environment on the human body better and any effects living in the depths may have on his body.

To keep himself healthy, medics drop by Dituri’s underwater apartment to perform health checkups, ensuring the environment has no adverse effect on his vitals. Additionally, Dituri performs a rigorous physical routine daily, including 100 sit-ups, 100 push-ups, squats and bicep curls, and overhead presses, with the help of resistance bands, keeping his muscles active underwater, as well as taking takes 2000 IU of Vitamin D supplements daily to make up for the Vitamin D deficiency caused by a lack of sunlight.

Through this mission, Dituri hopes to spark scientific curiosity and attract more of the younger generation to STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering, and maths.

“I want to incentivise children to explore our world and help solve our problems. STEM is one of the things that we need to start popularising science,” he says.

“If we make kids excited about science, we will have a better group of people in the scientists’ realm.”

Sources:

• https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/article/3217725/100-days-living-underwater-dr-deep-seas-record-breaking-mission-push-human-bodys-limits-and-get-kids?module=perpetual_scroll_0&pgtype=article&campaign=3217725

• https://www.npr.org/2023/05/16/1176131967/underwater-florida-professor-breaks-world-record#:~:text=The%20aquanaut%20has%20been%20lodging,two%20Tennessee%20educators%20in%202014.