Subsea Broadcasts

In 2016, we ventured into uncharted territory by hosting the world’s deepest live radio comedy show in partnership with Sirius XM. Hosted by John Fugelsang and featuring iconic guests like Mark Hamill and David Crosby, the broadcast brought a unique blend of humour and ocean exploration to global audiences.

In 2019, we broke new ground again by pioneering live subsea broadcasting. Collaborating with Sonardyne, Sky, and the Associated Press, we transmitted live video from untethered Triton submersibles during our missions, reaching millions of viewers worldwide.

Our First Descent broadcasts from the Indian Ocean aired in over 140 nations. A live subsea address by Seychelles President Danny Faure became the top global news story of the day, underscoring the urgent need to protect our ocean.

In partnership with Sky, we also produced Deep Ocean Live, delivering the first-ever live subsea newscasts. Over the course of three days, we broadcast nine hours of live programming to audiences in 120 nations, bringing the mysteries of the deep ocean into homes around the world.

How Do We Do It?

Traditional underwater communications, commonly used by industry, science, and the military, rely on acoustic (sound) waves. While effective over long distances, these methods transmit data at slow speeds. To revolutionise how we share the ocean’s story, we turned to the visible light electromagnetic spectrum, enabling high-speed communication through lasers and LEDs.

Sonardyne’s groundbreaking BlueComm technology leverages these optical bands to deliver high-bandwidth transmission—essentially underwater broadband without wires. This innovation allows us to transmit high-quality, real-time video and two-way audio from the depths of the ocean to people thousands of miles away.

Broadcasting live from the deep ocean is an engineering marvel. The unique challenges of the underwater environment require constant innovation, but each breakthrough brings us closer to transforming how we connect with the ocean’s wonders.