Images Dated 4th September 2015

Underwater house equipment under construction, Malta

Young man assembling electronic equipment connected with an underwater, inflatable house under construction on a beach in Malta. The house was anchored to the seabed, some 50 feet deep, in Paradise Bay, off the coast of Malta. It was equipped with lighting, telephone and immersion heaters with which the inhabitants could make hot drinks. It was constructed by teams of engineers and diving enthusiasts from Imperial College of Science and Technology and Enfield College of Technology. It was 9ft long and 6ft wide, constructed from rubberised material on a steel frame, and weighed around 500 lb. The team leader was David Baume who hoped it would be the first of a series of low cost underwater living spaces from which scientists could explore the seas. David and some other team members were able to spend a night 30 feet below the surface. The following day a severe storm caused the house to collapse.
1969

© Mary Evans Picture Library/DAVID LEWIS HODGSON