Re: ballons burst at 35 km
Posted by anyman on Jun 19, 2002 at 05:10
(61.183.175.158)Re: ballons burst at 35 km (paul baughn)
when i dive, the deeper i go the more the air in my lungs is compressed due to greater pressure (and density also figures in) and the more air i need to draw through my regulator to maintain *normal* lung capacity
a single tank of air that would last much longer (mm...*be more plentiful*) at shallower depths with lower external pressure would last only a few minutes at a depth of say 180ft (my deepest dive)
as i rise, i can actually get *extra* air because the air is expanding in a lower pressure environment
if i ascend to the surface too quickly, air in my lungs will expand too fast and could (and in some circumstances most certainly would) burst
worse if i ascend while holding my breath (continuous breathing and not overbreathing is the most important thing to remember when diving...along with checking your air guage often :-) it will almost surely happen
and this can happen from pretty modest depths...i've heard of it happening in less than 20ft of water
lungs are a little like balloons and differing submarine pressures are at least roughly analogous to atmospheric ones
depending on the circumstances and the skill of fellow divers...my body may or may not be recovered :-)