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Diving Into the Past

WHOI Archivist Dave Sherman examines film captured during the 153^rd dive aboard the Human-Occupied Vehicle (HOV) Alvin. Alvin was commissioned in 1964 and has been instrumental in exploring ocean environments down to 4,500 meters (14,760 feet) deep. The shelves behind Sherman contain hundreds of film reels detailing Alvin’s history, from its infancy more than 50 years ago to today. In addition to visual documentation, the WHOI Archives—part of the MBLWHOI Library—also holds ship logs from Alvin’s launching vessel, R/V Atlantis, as well as oral history interviews with former WHOI scientists, including the man for whom Alvin was named, Allyn Vine. (Photo by Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)