Water Pressure Rises One Atmosphere Every 33 Feet Down

At sea level, the air around us presses on our bodies at 14.7 pounds per square inch, a pressure called one atmosphere. Underwater it climbs fast. NOAA’s National Ocean Service states that for every 33 feet, or 10.06 meters, you go down, the pressure increases by one atmosphere. You can feel the increase on your eardrums. Many sea animals have no trouble with it. NOAA explains that whales can withstand dramatic pressure changes because their bodies are more flexible. Their ribs are bound by loose, bendable cartilage, which lets the rib cage collapse at pressures that would easily snap our bones, and their lungs can collapse safely as well, which keeps them from rupturing. That flexibility, according to NOAA, allows sperm whales to hunt for giant squid at depths of 7,000 feet or more.