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Dive Safety:
To
enhance the enjoyment and safety of a dive, consideration of the
direction and strength of currents is extremely important, wherever
you are diving; whether it is in the ‘kandu’, a pass between the
atoll reefs or ‘thila’ a shoal, inside the atolls. The success of a
dive almost always depends on these variables. The Maldivian
archipelago is swept by ceaseless currents caused by the monsoons;
generally east to west during the northeast monsoon, from December
to April and west to east during the southwest monsoon, from May to
November. However this is not a hard and fast rule, as changes in
wind directions and tides can offset the influence of the oceanic
currents - especially so during the transitional period between the
two seasons.Further, the location of islands reefs and ‘thilas’
cause great irregularity in the flow of current streams inside atoll
passes. Many local boat captains show great skill in telling the
direction of the current by observing tiny ripples or wave patterns
on the surface. However, the dive guide often jumps into the water
to determine the exact strength and direction.
Strong currents often
make a dive site livelier, and that makes the additional effort
worthwhile.
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