Home › CNN       11.07.2026

Sylvia Earle opens up about her historic walk into the deep

Some moments change the course of exploration forever.

In 1979, oceanographer Sylvia Earle descended 1,250 feet into the Pacific Ocean in a JIM suit, setting the record for the deepest untethered walk on the ocean floor.

Now, standing beside a replica of the iconic suit at the new National Geographic Museum of Exploration, she shares what she experienced during that historic dive — and why the sea continues to inspire wonder nearly five decades later, as part of the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative. #CallToEarth

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