For a chronological guide, see Timeline of diving technology.
The history of underwater diving starts with freediving as a widespread means of hunting and gathering, both for food and other valuable resources such as pearls and coral. By classical Greek and Roman times commercial applications such as sponge diving and marine salvage were established. Military diving also has a long history, going back at least as far as the Peloponnesian War, with recreational and sporting applications being a recent development. Technological development in ambient pressure diving started with stone weights (skandalopetra) for fast descent. In the 16th and 17th centuries diving bells became functionally useful when a renewable supply of air could be provided to the diver at depth, and progressed to surface-supplied diving helmets—in effect miniature diving bells covering the diver's head and supplied with compressed air by manually operated pumps—which were improved by attaching a waterproof suit to the helmet and in the early 19th century became the standard diving dress.
Limitations in the mobility of the surface-supplied systems encouraged the development of both open circuit and closed circuit scuba in the 20th century, which allow the diver a much greater autonomy. These also became popular during World War II for clandestine military operations, and post-war for scientific, search and rescue, media diving, recreational and technical diving. The heavy free-flow surface-supplied copper helmets evolved into lightweight demand helmets, which are more economical with breathing gas, which is particularly important for deeper dives and expensive helium based breathing mixtures, and saturation diving reduced the risks of decompression sickness for deep and long exposures.
An alternative approach was the development of the "single atmosphere" or armoured suit, which isolates the diver from the pressure at depth, at the cost of great mechanical complexity and limited dexterity. The technology first became practicable in the middle 20th century. Isolation of the diver from the environment was taken further by the development of remotely operated underwater vehicles in the late 20th century, where the operator controls the ROV from the surface, and autonomous underwater vehicles, which dispense with an operator altogether. All of these modes are still in use and each has a range of applications where it has advantages over the others, though diving bells have largely been relegated to a means of transport for surface-supplied divers. In some cases, combinations are particularly effective, such as the simultaneous use of surface orientated or saturation surface-supplied diving equipment and work or observation class remotely operated vehicles.
Although the pathophysiology of decompression sickness is not yet fully understood, decompression practice has reached a stage where the risk is fairly low, and most incidences are successfully treated by therapeutic recompression and hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Mixed breathing gases are routinely used to reduce the effects of the hyperbaric environment on ambient pressure divers.
and 24 Related for: History of underwater diving information
The historyofunderwaterdiving starts with freediving as a widespread means of hunting and gathering, both for food and other valuable resources such...
Glossary ofunderwaterdiving terminology for definitions of technical terms, jargon, diver slang and acronyms used in underwaterdiving See the Outline of underwater...
diving equipment. With the partial exception of breath-hold diving, the development ofunderwaterdiving capacity, scope, and popularity, has been closely...
underwaterdiving environment, or just diving environment is the natural or artificial surroundings in which a dive is done. It is usually underwater...
Underwaterdiving, as a human activity, is the practice of descending below the water's surface to interact with the environment. It is also often referred...
The diving environment is the natural or artificial surroundings in which a dive is done. It is usually underwater, but professional diving is sometimes...
glossary of technical terms, jargon, diver slang and acronyms used in underwaterdiving. The definitions listed are in the context ofunderwaterdiving. There...
ofdiving, or which has not been designed or modified specifically for underwater use by divers is not considered to be diving equipment. The diving mode...
fungi). Much of the science covering underwater habitats and their technology designed to meet human requirements is shared with diving, diving bells, submersible...
manufacturer ofunderwater breathing apparatus (1870–1965) Charles Anthony Deane – Pioneering diving engineer and inventor of a surface supplied diving helmet...
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving, is a mode ofunderwaterdiving that relies on breath-holding until resurfacing...
vintage underwaterdiving equipment, a notable collection ofdiving helmets and various artifacts that are dedicated to the historyofunderwaterdiving. The...
The science ofunderwaterdiving includes those concepts which are useful for understanding the underwater environment in which diving takes place, and...
given dive profile Dive planning – The process of planning an underwaterdiving operation Diver's logbook – Record ofdivinghistoryof an underwater diver...
a diving chamber out of the water Dive log – Record ofdivinghistoryof an underwater diver Dive planning – The process of planning an underwater diving...
Scuba diving is a mode ofunderwaterdiving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface breathing gas supply, and...
and health risks when they go underwater with scuba or other diving equipment, or use high pressure breathing gas. Some of these factors also affect people...
Professional diving is underwaterdiving where the divers are paid for their work. Occupational diving has a similar meaning and applications. The procedures...
The physiology ofunderwaterdiving is the physiological adaptations to divingof air-breathing vertebrates that have returned to the ocean from terrestrial...
The historyof scuba diving is closely linked with the historyof the equipment. By the turn of the twentieth century, two basic architectures for underwater...
Sponge diving is underwaterdiving to collect soft natural sponges for human use. Most sponges are too rough for general use due to their structural spicules...
Underwater sports is a group of competitive sports using one or a combination of the following underwaterdiving techniques - breath-hold, snorkelling...
at underwater sites Timeline ofdiving technology – Chronological list of notable events in the historyofunderwaterdiving equipment Underwater acoustics –...
atmosphere at the surface. Cave diving, wreck diving, ice diving and diving inside or under other natural or artificial underwater structures or enclosures are...