You can communicate underwater in different ways:
- Write with a slate pen on special tablets (slates)
- Signal with a flashlight
- Give signals using a rope/dive line (e.g. the most important signal, a danger sign when the rope jerks do not stop)
- Use very expensive equipment that reproduces the human voice underwater
However, despite such a variety of methods of underwater communication, the ABC of survival for any diver is sign language. You will learn the basics of this language during the basic diving course. This is the best possible communication option for a diver.
Representatives of different diving centers may have different gestures describing the same situation. Therefore, if you are diving for the first time with your partner, do not forget to coordinate with him in advance, on the shore, the signals that you will exchange underwater. Also a good prevention against misunderstanding is doubling and lining up gestures underwater.
The most common diver gestures:
POPPING UP
A hand clenched into a fist, with the inside facing the diver making this gesture, with the thumb released and pointing upward.
LET'S DIVE
A hand clenched into a fist, with the inside facing the observer, with the thumb freed and pointing downwards.
STOP, STOP DEMAND
An open palm facing the observer.
OUT OF AIR, CAN'T BREATHE
The diver "cuts" his neck with his palm.
THE DIVE IS GOING NORMALLY, EVERYTHING IS ACCORDING TO PLAN
The thumb and index fingers are connected to each other when the other fingers are straightened. American signal OK.
SPASM
The diver clenches and unclenches his fist, trying to attract attention to himself.
END OF DIVE
Arms crossed on the chest, with the inner surface facing the person showing.
SHARK
Palm standing vertically above the head.
DANGER
Hand clenched into a fist, straightened. The hand is extended in the direction from which danger is expected.
WHERE IS OUR SHIP?
The palms are cupped.
HOW MUCH AIR DO YOU HAVE LEFT?
Combination of gestures: the person asking the question points his finger at the partner and then taps his pressure gauge.
In addition to sign language, a beginner diver learns correctly
Diving is an exciting activity that requires compliance with certain rules. Despite the fact that even children are taught diving, it is an extreme form of recreation. In the underwater layer, danger can lurk everywhere: equipment failure, aggression of predatory fish, etc.
How to stay safe underwater
When learning to dive, the user must know that for a safe dive you need to provide yourself with the necessary items and equipment. The better equipped a diver is, the easier it is to deal with difficult and dangerous situations underwater. Before an underwater trip, it is recommended to check the health of yourself and your children (if they will be diving with adults).
It is better to acquire your first knowledge of diving with a coach or professional diver. Before you begin your first dives, you should learn the divers' signs. Signals under water help you navigate when moving and mean certain words. With the help of signs, divers can:
- Warn each other about dangers and malfunctions;
- call for descent, horizontal movement or ascent;
- prepare for joint actions, work, video and photography;
- ask and receive affirmative or negative answers;
- warn about problems in equipment and equipment;
- urgently call for a stop, i.e. point to the command “stop”;
- ask the person accompanying you for a portion of air.
Divers communicate using fingers, gestures or gestures. The “language” of submariners is very rich, but for a beginner it is enough to learn the most useful and basic signs.
When diving, the condition and quality of the equipment is no less important: wetsuit, scuba gear, fins. Even the most basic equipment should be checked while on the ground and before diving. If an emergency occurs under water, the following recommendations should be used:
- Use the diver’s signs to the maximum so that they can understand you as accurately as possible and help you in a timely manner;
- do not panic, but also do not start a sudden ascent;
- accurately comply with the requirements of a trainer or “fellow traveler” who has diving experience;
- remember the briefing that was given before the dive.
Before you begin your underwater journey, learn more information and tips from the experts. Once under water, any advice from an experienced master may be useful to you!
Hello friends.
A lot of time has passed since man invented articulate speech instead of growling.
Throughout this time, the language changed, improved, and adapted to the characteristics of the region of residence and the needs of a specific group of people.
Now it is difficult to imagine how we could understand each other without speech.
Some will say: There is a language of the deaf, and they do not need verbal speech.
And he will be right. But this is rather an exception to the rule.
The language of the deaf is practically independent of verbal languages, but develops independently, but some gestures (facial expressions, lip shape) are still borrowed from verbal speech.
It could well be used for communication underwater. The difficulty lies in the fact that it is difficult to use it to its full extent, primarily because the diver’s mouth is occupied by the mouthpiece of the snorkel or breathing apparatus.
And yet, divers have their own language of communication - underwater tongue.
Ways of underwater communication:
- hand gestures
- tactile contact
- flashlight signals
- rope signals
- other ways of communication
Conclusion
Like any other language, it may vary depending on the area in which it is used, the diving school used, and other factors. However, there are gestures that are present in any of the “underwater” dialects and are international.
To communicate underwater, we use hand gestures, tactile contact, flashlight and rope signals, and other methods of transmitting messages.
Most often we communicate hand gestures , which allow you to transmit more information compared to other methods.
The main role in this method is played by the shape of the hand, its orientation, the position of the hands relative to the body and each other, and the movements of the hands.
To show this more clearly, I present the main signals, their description and meaning in the table below:
| Gesture (signal) | Description | Meaning |
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Index finger pointing towards yourself | "I" |
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Index finger pointing at partner | "You" |
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Index finger pointing somewhere | |
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The hand is gathered into a fist, the index and middle fingers are directed towards the eyes | |
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The thumb and index fingers are closed in a ring, the rest are straightened | "Everything is fine?" |
|
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The hand is formed into a fist, the index finger is straightened and sways left and right | |
|
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Swing with open palm facing down | |
|
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Cutting movements with an open palm in the neck area | |
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Hugging yourself with your arms | |
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Fist pressed to chest | |
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Pointing with an open palm facing towards the lung demand valve | |
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The hand is gathered into a fist, the index finger points towards the ear | |
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Movements with an open palm towards you | |
|
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Pointing with an open palm towards the partner | "Stop" |
|
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Movements with an open palm pointing downwards towards oneself - away from oneself | |
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The hand is made into a fist, the thumb is pointing down | |
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The hand is made into a fist, the thumb is pointing upward | |
|
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Rotational movements with an open palm pointing down in a vertical plane | |
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“Extinguishing” movements with an open palm pointing down in a vertical plane | |
|
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The index fingers and thumbs of both hands are folded in a diamond shape, or the hands are folded into a boat | |
|
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Index fingers of both hands pressed together | "Near" |
In addition to gestures, we can use tactile contact . It is used in case of poor visibility or when one of the partners loses his mask.
The leading partner gives the signals, and the follower, who holds his hand on the leader, carries them out.
Jump forward – “Move forward”
Jerking backwards – “Stop”
A few jerks back - "Move backwards"
Dash movement to the left – “Move left”
Dash movement to the right – “Move to the right”
At night or at depths with poor lighting, when gestures are difficult to see, use flashlight signals . They are mainly needed to attract attention rather than to communicate.
In order not to blind your partner when giving a signal, the flashlight beam must be directed slightly to the side or down (to the bottom).
Circular rotations of the beam along the bottom mean that “Everything is okay” and can serve as both a question and an answer.
Slow movements of the beam left and right or up and down mean “Attention.”
Rapid movements in the same directions indicate an emergency and require immediate intervention from a partner.
Once attention has been attracted, other signals are given by hand gestures in the light of a lantern.
Rope signals also served in conditions of poor visibility, in underwater caves, under ice or overhanging surfaces. In this case, the diver is tied with the signal end to the person belaying on the boat or to a partner.
As with tactile contact, signals are transmitted in jerks, only now with jerks of the rope.
One jerk - “Is everything okay?” or “Everything is fine!”
Two jerks – “Stop” or “Stopped”
Three jerks - “Sink” or “Submerge”
Four jerks - “Float” or “Float”
Frequent jerking - “Danger. Pop up" or "Danger. I'm popping up"
As you can see, there are two signal meanings. The first of them is the transmission of a signal from the belayer or leader, the second is the response of the follower.
TO other ways of communication In underwater language we include sound signals, signals using a buoy and communication through an underwater recording tablet.
If with a tablet, I think, there will be no questions: you write a word, show it to your partner, and everyone understands each other, then the sound and “buoy” ones are worth clarifying.
The principle is the same as when using a rope:
One knock (tug on the buoy cable) - “Is everything okay?” or “Everything is fine!”
Two knocks (jerks) - “Stop” or “Stopped.”
Finally, I would like to remind you that although the basic signals and gestures mean the same thing almost everywhere, you should definitely discuss them with your partner or group before diving. To clarify whether we can understand each other correctly under water.
What else you need to take care of before diving, you can read in the article:
Perhaps basic signals will not be enough for you to communicate...
No question! Come up with your own, but just remember them well yourself, explain them to your partners and make them remember these signals.
The ability to communicate clearly under water is one of the main rules of diving!
Enjoy your communication.
Best regards, Sergey Drozdov.
P. S. If you have any questions after reading the article, do not hesitate to ask in the comments.
P. P. S. You can familiarize yourself with the topics that will be covered in the near future at."
and with its help, choose a tour from the most
reliable operators!
It often happens that we have a relatively long break when we still have insufficient diving experience.
And during this break, the language of signs is forgotten.
Here we give you the main signs that divers use.
Sign 1. OK. Used UNDER WATER ONLY.
This sign is both a question and an answer. That is, if they show you this sign, it means that they are asking you: “Are you all right?”
If everything is fine with you, you should respond with the same sign.
This sign is also used as a response in the meaning of “good”, “understood”, “agree”, “ready”, depending on which sign you are answering.
Same OK. Used ON THE SURFACE OF WATER.
For example, when you enter the water on a ship, you give such a sign to your partner or members of the ship’s crew.
Also, at the end of the dive, when you have surfaced not in the immediate vicinity of the vessel, it is good form to show such a sign to the crew of the vessel or zodiac who are approaching you to bring you on board.
Sign 3. “Problem.” Used if something happens to you. Needs specification.
That is, if, for example, you can’t blow your head, and your partner asks you with the “OK?” sign, you show him the “Problem” sign, and then clarify which one it is - point your finger in your ear.
Same "Problem". Used in the same cases as sign 3, but on the surface. Doesn't need specification. Is a call "Help!" A kind of SOS.
Seeing this sign, the crew of the ship or zodiac, or your comrades, will try to come to your aid as quickly as possible.
Indicates "Keep the horizon" in other words “Let’s stay at this depth.”
Sometimes it is a comment that you are not carefully monitoring your own buoyancy, and thus your friend invites you to be more careful in maintaining neutral buoyancy.
Sign 6. "Stop"
We don’t even know what to add to this... Stop, in short!
Sign 7. “Not enough air.”
Served in cases where you suspect that there is clearly not enough air left to complete the dive.
For example, 10 bar may not be enough to “stand” for 3 minutes at a safety stop. Or you have 30 bar left, and you are still at a depth of 30 meters - this is also not enough to safely complete the dive.
That is, there may be enough air “back to back”, but there is a high probability that there may not be enough.
Sign 8. “Let me breathe.” Usually served immediately after the 7 or 9 characters.
Sign 9. “No air”
This is already an emergency situation that you have no right to bring about. Served when you want to take a breath, but have nothing to do!
We wish you that, if you find yourself in a situation where you have run out of air at depth, at least have time to give this sign.
As a last resort, don’t waste your last energy on giving a sign, but grab your partner’s octopus!
Indicates "You are the follower, I am the leader"
Can be served in a variety of situations. For example, to organize movement in a group. Or, for example, you do not feel entirely confident, and invite a more experienced comrade to go ahead of you and give you an example of how to behave in this situation, which is incomprehensible to you.
You can first point, for example, at yourself, and then put this hand in the “leading” position, and with the other hand – at your partner and put this hand in the “following” position. Thus, you clearly said: “I am the leader, you are the follower!”
Indicates "Slower"
With this sign you can ask your partner to swim not so fast.
Indicates "I'm frozen"
Well, what can you do, you’re cold, you need to surface!
Indicates “Where shall we go?”
Used only as a question about the direction of movement.
