Great white sharks are known as one of the fiercest marine species living today. Despite their monstrous abilities, these sharks could calm down and just swim peacefully across waters. Today, many places have been confirmed as hotspots of their sightings.
The advancements in technology allowed us to explore the biology and natural habitats of great white sharks. Through these innovations, we were able to have a closer look at how they live and the factors that push them to survive.
How Great White Sharks are Portrayed in Documentaries
In a previous exhibition back in 2004, oceanography specialist Fabien Cousteau was invited to document what might be the most breathtaking scenery underwater. The experts were offered to go underwater with great white sharks and explore the world of the animals further.
The French scientist was given a chance to layout plans for the project. Among his interests was to build a mini-submarine that could fit a person and dive to the depths of the sea undetected and safe from the sharks.
The concept was to construct a vehicle that looks similar to the anatomy of the great white sharks. According to Cousteau, this approach would be the most effective way to swim alongside the most dangerous predators of the deep.
In a report by The Sun, Cousteau explained that the utilization of the great white submarine is the most convenient and innovative way to film the sharks without giving off any artificial while exposed to the presence of the animals.
Sharks are likely to react or respond to anything they perceive, including the human activities that are demonstrated when conducting activities underwater such as observation procedures, Cousteau said.
Crazy Frenchman made great white shark submarine that terrified other sharkshttps://t.co/XVL7wF8KDc pic.twitter.com/QUQmOFXKQL
— Daily Star (@dailystar) May 14, 2022
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The aggressiveness of the sharks that are commonly shown in many documentaries is due to the unusual methods people take during these events, and it is not the best representation of the natural behaviors they actually have, the experts continued.
Great White Submarine: Peaceful Approach to Shark Observation
Today, the conundrum was solved by Cousteau's team through their underwater machine called 'Troy.' The vehicle was equipped with exquisite technology that could take a person into the depths of the oceans without disturbing the great white sharks.
Troy was assembled with high-powered engines and systems to mimic the movements of the marine beasts. The experts did not hold back, even modifying the exterior details of the submarine. The skin wrapped around Troy was built from glass and sand to get closer textures to real sharks.
The great white submarine scales to 14 feet or more than four meters in length. Its weight measures 1,200 pounds or roughly 540 kilograms. Most of its chassis is made up of fiberglass to minimize the heaviness while maintaining superb underwater protection.
In a recent dive with Troy, Cousteau was able to swim amidst the sharks. Because of the massive appearance of the submarine, sharks seemingly mistook it for a dominant female individual. This caused them to remain calm and stay at a distance of up to eight meters away from the scientist.
Through this approach, Cousteau's team got ahold of the first-ever footage of great white sharks without human-induced violence. Further developments are expected to perfect the functions of the vehicle. The $245,000 submarine remains the first and only existing great white vehicle today.
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