Some things you may not have known about diving.
• The first scuba diving equipment is thought to be a diving bell invented by Guglielmo de Loreno in 1535.
• Waterford man Robert Boyle was the first to identify decompression sickness or the bends in 1667.
• Rubber goggles were invented in 1930, followed by swim fins in 1933 and the wetsuit in 1956.
• The record for the deepest scuba dive, 318m (about the height of the Eiffel Tower), is held by 52-year-old South African, Nuno Gomes. Gomes completed the depth in 2005, spending more than 12 hours in the water.
• Some of the most famous wrecks in the world are available to Irish divers including the Lusitania and the Kowloon Bridge (both off Co Cork). See www.irishwrecksonline.net for info.
• CFT (Comhairle Fo-Thuinn) is the national governing body for underwater sports in Ireland. Its website (www.cft.ie) has a comprehensive list of affiliated sub-aqua clubs nationwide.