Dennis Chamberland’s ‘Undersea Colonies’ takes us on a journey to better contemplate a permanent human presence in the oceans. The book is a quick read, and intended for both undersea professionals and the layperson. The book forgoes the complex physics and physiology of saturation diving and the engineering feats behind undersea living structures, and focuses on the fundamental considerations, requirements, and manners of thinking that we, as humanity, should seriously start to address during the ongoing course of our evolution.

Given the state of our world today, one point that Chamberland emphasizes that particularly stuck with me is the dependence on power in an undersea habitat. Without power, the mission is over – there is no longer a means to maintain a livable environment. It would be cost-ineffective to rely on shore based power. The ocean has much power to be harvested, but these technologies are just in their infancy.

He uses his developing work as examples throughout the text, which at times seems to be propaganda, however it is clear that Chamberland is impassioned about the subject, which is clearly expressed in his writing.

For anyone dreaming about a permanent foray into the deep, this is a must read. It is clear that humans have only scratched the surface of maximizing our presence and potential here on Earth…’Undersea Colonies’ may very well be the next step.