Diving Bell

ocean · underwater work · inventions

Rigid metal chamber. A diving bell is a strong metal capsule shaped like an upside-down bell that protects divers as it sinks beneath the waves.

Suspended by cable. The diving bell hangs from a thick rope or cable attached to a winch on a ship or platform above, which lowers it down and pulls it back up.

Two main types. Some diving bells have an open bottom where water enters, while others are completely sealed and keep the air inside at high pressure to keep water out.

For underwater jobs. Divers use diving bells to reach deep places where they need to repair pipelines, search the ocean floor, or explore areas too dangerous to reach any other way.

Not a submarine. Unlike a submarine, a diving bell cannot move on its own or be steered by the people inside, it just goes straight up and down.