a diver documenting a shipwreck

Diving into the unfolding history of wrecked slave ships

A National Geographic explorer searches for forgotten wrecks that conceal family histories buried underwater.

While diving in the Florida Keys Tara Roberts practices mapping and measuring techniques used for documenting shipwrecks.
Photograph by Chris Searles

Lead instructor Kamau Sadiki sits in the ocean at 12-feet depth in lotus position, legs folded on top of each other. In scuba gear, he looks like a Zen master with a tiny ‘fro—serene and graceful. He holds my scuba vest with one hand to give me purchase while I try to mimic his pose. I look decidedly less serene and graceful. So I give up and look around instead.

We are on a fun dive for new divers in crystal-clear waters of the Florida Keys. I notice lead instructor Jay Haigler slicing through the water, smooth like an eel, below me. I can see his brown legs amid the blue backdrop and diver Sabrina Johnson bicycling to the side of

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