A thrilling exploration of the science and history of the deep sea. Full of mystery and danger, the deep sea has long been a symbol of the great unknown. In this dramatic and thrilling account, acclaimed biologist and deep sea diver Bill Streever shows us the incredible adventures happening in earth's almost incomprehensibly vast oceans.
From the bottom of the Challenger Deep (the deepest known point in the ocean), to the earliest submarine technologies and exploratory deep dives, into the world of competitive breath-hold divers and the riskiest thrill seekers on the planet, In Oceans Deep is a human history, and a natural history of the earth's last true frontier. With treasure ship wrecks, the echoing pings of trapped submariners, and the vast expanse of otherworldly robots and oil rigs that dominate the oceanic landscape, In Oceans Deep is a rare and fascinating trip to the wild, strange, night-dark place that lies beneath the waves.
Bill Streever is the bestselling and award-winning authors of And Soon I Heard a Roaring Wind, Cold, and Heat. As a biologist, he has worked on issues ranging from climate change to the restoration of Arctic tundra to underwater noise to the evolution of cave crayfish. With his wife and co-captain, he splits his time between Alaska and their cruising sailboat, currently in Central America.
"In Oceans Deep combines painstaking research with narrative flair and a genuine love for the subject [...] It is both an education and a terrific read"
– Chris Wright journalist and author of No More Worlds to Conquer
"A beautifully written and thrilling exploration of humanity's place in the depths by a master interpreter who has spent a lifetime face-to-face with the shipwrecks, animals, machines, daring souls, and enduring mysteries that populate this gorgeous, hidden world."
– Robert Kurson, New York Times bestselling author of Shadow Divers and Rocket Men
"Bill Streever takes us on an entertaining and richly informative journey into the marine frontier. I recommend this book to anyone who may wish to be awed, and perhaps disturbed, by the depths to which humans will go to explore it."
– Jonathan Balcombe, author of What a Fish Knows
"Exquisitely researched and written, I highly recommend In Oceans Deep"
– Jonathan White, author of Tides: The Science and Spirit of the Ocean
"A broad-spectrum examination of underwater adventuring [...] Mr. Streever's writing is lucid on subjects ranging from gas chemistry to dredging to underwater robotics."
– Wall Street Journal
"A buoyant, at times thrilling, account of the deep sea experience, perfect for divers and other lovers of life beneath the waves."
– Kirkus Review
"A fascinating [...] journey for readers into a little-known world."
– Anchorage Daily News
"A fine writer with genuine sea credentials [...] Streever's book makes clear that the deep, though much closer to us, is still tantalizingly distant."
– Natural History Magazine
"In this homage-cum-history of human endeavor in the ocean depths, biologist, writer and diver Bill Streever brings to light a region less explored than the Moon."
– Nature Magazine
"Streever tells a story that captures human fascination with the ocean, and encourages readers to become more interested in what lies beneath the waves."
– Shelf Awareness