EXPEDITION CATALINA

Fulfilling our mission to inspire, explore and discover, OceanGate collaborated with the Undersea Voyager Project during a two week exploration of the waters around Catalina Island. During the expedition, the CALUV team hosted four researchers from local universities who were supported by five Mission Specialists and five Youth Ambassadors from area schools. The expedition team successfully:

• Discovered the exact underwater location of a vintage CIA Lockout Chamber used during the Cold War when listening stations such as this were stationed all over the oceans to track Soviet submarines
• Performed submarine dives to 747 feet to observe and document the marine ecology and geology
• Filmed and observed a variety of ocean flora and fauna including Leopard Sharks, Bat Eagle Rays, Giant Red Sea Cucumbers, and California Brown Sea Hare
• Performed outreach o local schools and youth camps to help inspire over 500 students to explore and pursue educational adventures
• Performed multiple ROV missions to film and explore multiple dive sites including Farnsworth Bank, Blue Cavern Point, Ship Rock Canyons and Eagle Reef
• Hosted a ROV event where local students had the opportunity to pilot a remotely operated vehicle and maneuver it through a maze

For the CALUV project, OceanGate designed and built what may be the world's smallest lifting barge. The barge is used to lift Antipodes to the surface so we can recharge the batteries and replinish the air supply. The time-lapse video above shows the process in action. First, the barge buoyancy tanks are flooded with water to sink the barge. Next, Antipodes is manuevered onto the barge. Finally, air is put into the barge buoyancy tanks to float the barge and Antipodes to the surface. At the start of this video, you see Karl in the kayak on the barge deck operating the remote controls to vent and fill the buoyancy tanks.

CALUV was the brainchild of UVP's founder, Scott Cassell, a commercial diver, marine explorer, and underwater filmmaker. Most famous for his on-screen in-water encounters with a variety of shark species, Humboldt Squid, and even Giant Squid, he has dedicated his life to studying and preserving our planet's oceans while also working tirelessly to inspire kids to follow their dreams.

Scott selected Catalina for this critical project not only because of its pristine marine environment that is largely unexplored below recreational scuba diver depths but also because of its proximity to one of the nation's largest concentrations of school-age children. Having lived and dived in Catalina for several years, he has first-hand experience with the true beauty, mystery, and opportunity the island presents.