!!!The first "under ice" panorama in the world

Victor Lyagushkin,
members of the [AirPano Team|Geography/About/Consortium/AirPano,_Team] that is a member of the [global-geography Consortium|Geography/About/Consortium]. \\

10 July 2013

with kind permission of [AirPano|http://www.AirPano.com]

AirPano continues to present not only aerial panoramas but also shows
the beauty of the underwater world of our planet. Our first underwater
panorama had been created on Maldives islands, then the photographers of
Phototeam.pro created an absolutely unique panorama in underwater Orda
cave. Today we present the panorama taken under the ice of the White
sea.

Now we would like to turn the floor over to Victor Lyagushkin, a person
who created this panorama.

Ice diving has a special place among all other types of diving. During
this process you can't surface where you want, you have to carry more
equipment, and the temperature of air and water is much lower. Salt
water freezes when temperature drops below zero, about minus two degrees
to be more precise. Water in the White Sea reaches freezing point. This
is why only a select few can do ice diving. As a result, there are fewer
registered ice divers than there are cave divers. Arctic Circle Dive
Centre is considered a global mecca for ice diving in the White Sea.

[{Image src='01_White whale or beluga.jpg' caption='White whale or beluga' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='648'}]

The White Sea (before the 17th century it had several Russian names:
Studyonoe More, Solovetskoe More, Severnoe More, Spokoinoe More, Beliy
Zaliv) is an almost landlocked extension of the Arctic Ocean in the
northwestern Russia. In Scandinavian mythology the White Sea is known as
the "Gandvik" and also as the "Bay of Serpents" because of its curved
shoreline.

[{Image src='02_Diving under the ice in the White sea.jpg' caption='Diving under the ice in the White sea' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='620'}]

Some researchers believe that it was called "white" because it's covered
by ice for the most part of the year (it's the only sea in Europe
completely covered with ice in winter). Others believe that the name
comes from the whitish color of the water that reflects the northern
sky.

The White Sea was first called "the White Sea" (Mare Album) on the map
drawn by Petrus Fiancius in 1592. On the Ptolemy's world map discovered
in 1427 the Arctic Sea bay, which coordinates correspond to the White
Sea, is called the Calm Sea.

[{Image src='03_Diving under the ice in the White sea.jpg' caption='Diving under the ice in the White sea' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='599'}]

Among the seas that surround Russia the White Sea is the second smallest
one (the smallest one being the Sea of ??Azov).

The White Sea is one of the most beautiful seas in the northern part of
Russia where nature is untouched by man, and animal life is rich and
unique. Every winter in the Northern part of the White Sea Greenland
seals make a rookery and by spring they give birth to white-coat seals.
Uninhabited islands of the White Sea are the nesting ground for numerous
bird colonies: in summer sea birds hatch their eggs and raise their
young. The White Sea is a home to the white whale or beluga. These
beauties that weigh over one and half ton are very sociable,
good-natured, highly intelligent, and artistic.

[{Image src='04_Diving with belugas.jpg' caption='Diving with belugas' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='515'}]

The underwater world of the White Sea has beautiful landscapes and rich
marine life: soft corals, sea anemones, sponges, starfish, crabs, hermit
crabs, sea-urchins, and shrimps. In winter you can have a closer look at
the following fish: catfish, redfish, flounder, and henfish. During ice
diving when water visibility reaches 30-40 meters a diver can observe
very beautiful landscapes: underwater rocks that go all the way into the
deep, slightly swaying sea wares at the bottom, and piles of ice beneath
the surface that look like ghostly castles.

[{Image src='05_White whale or beluga.jpg' caption='White whale or beluga' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='900'}]

Green water in this panorama is not the use of color corrector. The
color is caused by microscopic planktonic algae that comprises the core
of marine life. Plankton algae absorbs red light from sun rays, because
they need it for photosynthesis. This is why sea water becomes green.
And the more life there is in the sea, the more phytoplankton in the
sea, the greener the water. That is why our White Sea is so green.

[{Image src='06_The White Sea. Life under the ice.jpg' caption='The White Sea. Life under the ice' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='900'}]

Photographer: Victor Lyagushkin. Phototeam.pro

Models: Bogdana Vashenko, Konstantin Novikov, Mikhail Safonov.

Nikon D3s, Subal housing (box), Nikkor 14-24/2.8

We would like to express our gratitude to Arctic Circle Diving Centre
for help with organisation and Nikon company for technical support.

Panorama stitching and processing: AirPano

\\ \\
[1 Panoramas of White_sea_under_ice_panorama|Geography/Asia/Russia/Pictures/Panoramas_of_The_first_under_ice_panorama_in_the_world]










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