the dive 15 6:11 P.M. | LAUNCH +10 HOURS, 0 MINUTES | DEPTH: 0 METERS There’s still plenty of daylight when the Limiting Factor peeks above the water, though the sun has migrated most of the way across the watercolor sky. A man in a fluorescent yellow vest dives into the ocean from a Zodiac raft and swims over to manually attach a tow cable to the submersible so that it can be brought back aboard the Pressure Drop. His name is Shane Muhl but he’s affectionately known as Speedo. Speedo’s duty, which is not without risk, represents just one of many crucial roles that have enabled Caladan’s missions over the past half-decade. These range from the engineers and technicians responsible for the groundbreaking technology that makes these expeditions possible, to the cartographers and scientists who can contextualize the expeditions’ discoveries, to the crew that keeps the Pressure Drop running, including the onboard cooks. Once pulled from the Limiting Factor, exhausted but still running on adrenaline, Dawn is more than ready for a hot meal prepared by those cooks. She has to keep her game face on a little longer to indulge the media crew that’s there to document her achievement, but soon she’s able to go to the restroom (!), shower, and join Victor in the galley for a plate of spaghetti Bolognese (his favorite postdive meal). It’s past dinner hour for the rest of the ship, so the two explorers are able to share a quiet moment of reflection. Shane Muhl stands on the submersible waiting for the Pressure Drop to hoist the Limiting Factor aboard.
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