Is our future at sea? German engineer spent 4 months living under water on the coast of Panama

Every morning during the last four months, German Rudiger Koch woke up to an out of the ordinary panorama: surrounded by fish and crustaceans that roam their windows among their windows submarines11 meters deep.

After 120 days, Koch became the person who has managed to spend the longest living under the water, exceeding the previous record, 100 days, established in 2023 by the American Joseph Dituri.

The objective of this 59 -year -old Aerospace Engineer was not just beating a record of permanence under water, but demonstrate that “living in the ocean is possible” and that it could be a real alternative for humanity.

Koch made his feat near Puerto Lindo, on the Caribbean coast of Panama, within a submerged module that he designed and, he says, has already become home to diverse marine life.

“It was a quite spontaneous idea,” Koch told BBC News in a conversation conducted from his unusual residence, shortly before concluding his underwater stay.

“My daughter was here and I needed an additional bed, so I installed one in the underwater part and we ended up spending a lot of time down. There arose the idea of ​​overcoming Dituri’s record.”

A HABITAT OF 30 SQUARE METERS

The “home” under Koch’s water understood about 30 square meters of space, with a vertical tube that connected the underwater house with a floating structure on the surface. Up there was part of his team, as well as the supplies and the communications system that allowed him to keep in touch with the outside.

Although his unusual residence had a bed, internet (thanks to a Starlink link), computer and even a static bicycle, the limitations were many, which were going From the lack of shower to the need to maintain health and air quality controls constantly.

“Here I have several sensors, such as CO2. I also measure temperature and humidity, and I have a clock that constantly records my vital signs,” Koch told BBC News, pointing out the devices that were seen throughout the enclosure.

Thus, not only watched over his own security, but generated data for researchers and specialists interested in knowing the effects of a prolonged stay under the sea.

Between fish and corals

The six windows surrounding the capsule gave Koch a privileged vision of marine life. He said that he spent several minutes a day contemplating fishing schools and listening to the incessant crustacean click and other animals that inhabit the structure and surroundings.

“I can hear continuous clicks, which come from certain crustaceans capable of moving their tweezers so fast that they form a vacuum bubble. When collapsing, there is a very strong sound, almost like a whip,” he explained to BBC News.

This noise, almost imperceptible to those who are not submerged prolonged, reminded him that his presence also favors the formation of an artificial reef: the outer surface of the habitat is populated with algae, corals and other sea creatures that take advantage of the structure as a refuge .

Koch was not alone in this adventure. He had a support team that operated from the upper chamber and was responsible for providing food and monitoring vital aspects, such as electricity supply and weather conditions.

In addition, he had the support of other people linked to currents of thought that promote the so -called “ocean colonization” or being adequate. For them, Koch’s experience is not only the search for a new record, but a first step to demonstrate the viability of installing stable communities on the high seas.

“I am being monitored as a ‘control’ for what Dr. Dituri did, who lived 100 days submerged in a pressurized environment,” Koch said, referring to the US researcher who until now had the world record for spending more time submerged.

“The difference is that I am subject to water pressure at the environmental level, without having to use diving equipment to enter and leave the room.”

Dituri established a record of permanence in an underwater habitat pressurized in 2023, when he spent 100 days underwater in Florida, United States.

Routine and challenges

During his days, Koch spent much of his time doing technical tests, recording videos and attending to everyday issues remotely thanks to the Internet connection.

He acknowledged that one of the largest challenges was to deal with the humidity and narrowness of space, in addition to the absence of a shower in normal conditions.

Although he had visual contact with his visitors when they went down to see him, and communication continues with his team through the upper capsule, Koch admitted that the experience was felt lonely.

Despite this, he considers that he managed to turn his stay into a kind of “ordinary life” under the sea.

As he said he would do it to the BBC, the first thing he did to the emergence of the structure on January 24 was “smoking a cigar of victory.”

“After that, I want to take a good dip and, of course, take a real shower,” he said.

For many, what Koch did is unusual; But for him, It is a demonstration that the line between the surface and the seabed is not as impassable as one might think.

“It’s another step to understand that humans can inhabit new environments,” he said.

“What we want to show is that oceans are a viable environment for human expansion,” he said, with the conviction that this type of project can multiply in the future and that communities in the sea could offer solutions to space problems and resources on the earth’s surface.