Life Aquatic
– interesting things people do in and around water
New research reveals that fog is far more than suspended water droplets. It is a temporary aquatic world filled with microbial life that may help cleanse the atmosphere, influence climate, and even affect human health. In a very real way, fog is, in fact, alive!
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In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as California reinvented itself as a land of health, leisure, and spectacle, a new aquatic building type emerged along its coastlines and growing inland cities: the plunge. In a time before the emergence of the backyard pool industry, the plunges were grand civic destinations, often enclosed, frequently ornate, and almost always tied to broader visions of social life and economic development.
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Far below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean, beyond the reach of wind and waves, a vast and patient machinery is at work. It does not roar or churn in ways we can easily see, yet it moves heat, salt, carbon, and life itself across the southern and northern hemispheres. Known as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, it is one of Earth’s most consequential natural systems. It is also one of its most vulnerable.
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Although they’ve been around for decades, waterparks remain a dynamic and innovative industry focused on delivering a spectrum of aquatic experiences to consumers of all ages. After more than 25 years in the business, Craig Nielsen has had a front-row seat to the evolution, and he’s says with confidence, waterparks are only at the beginning.
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At age 29, Marcus Hampton has been running his own custom home and watershaping design and build firm for eight years. And, as he explains in this discussion about the industry’s new generation of aspiring professionals, in many ways, he and his contemporaries are just getting started.
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As more and more cities and commercial properties recognize how themed aquatic play and inclusive design encourage interactive fun, one Arizona municipality has invested in a creative and efficient splash pad to help residents stay cool and have fun in the heat.
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Steven V. DeBiasi has spent a career creating masterful landscape and watershape environments across the Pacific Ocean. Based in Honolulu with a business stretching island to island far west across the International Date Line, he shares the story of how he discovered success and adventure following distant waters.
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From tranquil pools to vast oceans, few environments rival the immersive beauty of being underwater. For photographer Karyn Allard, that subaquatic world is a place of visual wonder, emotional reflection, artistic expression, and natural connection. In this personal essay, Allard shares her journey from childhood fascination with water to a lifelong creative pursuit that marries the quest for artistry, technical mastery, and emotional depth.
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The ocean hides many secrets, and among its most haunting are the remains of ancient civilizations now lost to its depths. With new technology, including sonar mapping, underwater drones, and satellite imagery, now more than ever before researchers are uncovering forgotten chapters of human history hidden on the ocean floor.
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Finding the Rescue: A Life in Water, Science, and Spirit