Florida Man Breaks Record After Living Underwater For Months

A Florida researcher broke a world record for the longest time living underwater without depressurization last week, according to WPLG. Dr. Joseph Dituri, also known as "Dr. Deep Sea," spent more than 74 days submerged at Jules' Undersea Lodge, which sits at the bottom of a 30-foot-deep lagoon in Key Largo.

Dituri, a University of South Florida educator with a doctorate in biomedical engineering, told reporters said breaking the record is actually a bonus. His stay at the lodge is part of an underwater mission called Project Neptune 100. Organized by the Marine Resources Development Foundation, Dituri said he conducts daily experiments to see how the human body reacts to long-term exposure to extreme pressure.

“The idea here is to populate the world’s oceans, to take care of them by living in them and really treating them well,” the professor explained. “The record is a small bump and I really appreciate it... We still have more science to do.”

Dituri's day also includes a high-protein diet of eggs and salmon, exercise, teaching online courses, and an hour-long nap. The educator did reveal the one thing he misses about living on the surface:

“The thing that I miss the most about being on the surface is literally the sun,” he said. “The sun has been a major factor in my life – I usually go to the gym at five and then I come back out and watch the sunrise.”

The previous record holder is two Tennessee professors named Bruce Cantrell and Jessica Fain. Reporters said both of them spent 73 days, two hours, and 34 minutes at the same lodge back in 2014.

Dituri's deep-sea endeavor isn't over year. The researcher said he won't be resurfacing anytime soon because he plans on staying underwater for 100 total days. That means he plans on staying at the lodge until June 9.