Shropshire Star

11 things we learned from Fabien Cousteau – who lived under water for 31 days

The food was ‘really, really awful’.

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Supporting image for story
The team set up temporary quarters on a vessel serving as the world’s only underwater marine laboratory (Grafner/Getty Images/PA)

In 2014, Fabien Cousteau and his team embarked on a mission to break the world record for the number of days spent living under water.

They set up temporary quarters on Aquarius, an 81-ton vessel that serves as the world’s only underwater marine laboratory located nine miles off the coast of the Florida Keys and 63 feet beneath the sea.

Then 31 days later, the team emerged back on the shore, breaking the record formerly set by Mr Cousteau’s grandfather – the famous ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau – by a day.

Four years later, Mr Cousteau relives his Mission 31 experience on Reddit’s Ask Me Anything and here are 11 things we learned from the aquanaut.

1. On the common misconceptions about the ocean

— Fabien Cousteau (@FCousteau) June 10, 2014

4. On the coolest and the hardest things about living underwater

5. On human garbage in the ocean

— Fabien Cousteau (@FCousteau) June 30, 2014

7. On noise pollution

— Fabien Cousteau (@FCousteau) June 27, 2014

10. On sleep patterns and underwater sounds