Tweet This Page

American Experience: Sealab  Review by Suzanne Lanoue 4/10/19

This was very interesting. I confess that I don't know a lot about history. This show was about the beginnings of the Sealab program in 1969, which helps us understand the depths of the ocean (and how men could best do research in the depths), which lead to other programs and a whole lot of knowledge. It highlights a time and place that most of us probably don't know about.

There is a lot of video from back in the sixties (and since) that helps tell the story. I really enjoyed watching this, and I think everyone should watch it to learn about the Sealab.

This would make a great gift to anyone, but especially to a teacher or to a classroom. However, there are no features or extras.

MORE INFORMATION:

THIS APRIL PBS DISTRIBUTION RELEASES

HIGHLY ANTICIPATED AND CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED TITLES INCLUDING “VICTORIA, SEASON 3,” “MASTERPIECE: MRS. WILSON” AND HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.’S “RECONSTRUCTION: AMERICA AFTER THE CIVIL WAR” AMONG MANY OTHERS

Programs Available on DVD/Blu-ray and Digital Download

Arlington, VA – March 26, 2019 – This April, PBS Distribution will be releasing a plethora of new programs on DVD and digitally, including the critically acclaimed, “VICTORIA, SEASON 3,” the highly-anticipated “MRS. WILSON,” the fascinating “RECONSTRUCTION: AMERICA AFTER THE CIVIL WAR,” and the eye-opening “CHARM CITY.”  

AMERICAN EXPERIENCE

SEALAB

In the spring of 1964, explorers were preparing for a new mission, diving into the sea as one of the Navy’s newly-minted “aquanauts.” Aquanauts were divers who attempted to chart the ocean’s depths and faced barriers that had thwarted humans for centuries: near total blackness, bone-jarring cold, and intense pressure that could disorient the mind and crush the body. Aboard Sealab, explorers would attempt to break through those barriers – going deeper and staying underwater longer than anyone had done before.

An audacious feat of engineering — a pressurized underwater habitat, complete with science labs and living quarters — Sealab aimed to prove that humans were capable of spending days or even months living and working on the ocean floor. Sealab would pioneer what is known as “saturation diving,” which would allow divers to remain undersea — and emerge unscathed — for more extended periods of time. After a tragic accident the Sealab program was subsequently suspended and completely shut down in 1970, however the lessons learned were used in numerous covert Naval operations for years to come.