Alvin pilot Bruce Strickrott conducts pre-dive safety training with Dan MacDonald, a University of Delaware graduate student. All potential Alvin divers are fitted with Emergency Breathing Apparatus masks that are tested to ensure they seal tightly around their faces. (Photo by Chris Linder, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Duke University scientist Cindy van Dover donned her EBA in Alvin’s personnel sphere Sunday, following training protocols. When a CO₂ scrubber malfunctioned, the mission was aborted and the sub and occupants surfaced safely. (Photo by Jefferson Grau, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Every time you board an airplane, you get the speech: “In the event of a loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will appear …”

Alvin is similarly equipped with Emergency Breathing Apparatus, or EBAs, and pilots and scientists diving in the sub are scrupulously briefed on how to use them in case of an emergency during a dive.

Alvin Expedition Leader Bruce Strickrott has performed hundreds of these training briefings. “I think about it every time I dive: ‘Is this the day I’ll have to wear one of these?’ ” he said. Read More →