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USNS Hoyt S. Vandenberg To Be Sunk For a Reef
caffiend666 writes "On Wednesday the USNS Hoyt S. Vandenberg is to be sunk in 140 feet of water off of Key West to become the world's second largest artificial reef. (The largest was created by sinking the aircraft carrier USS Oriskany off of Pensacola, Florida, in 2006.) The Vandenberg was built in 1943 (chronology) and commissioned the USS Gen. Harry Taylor. In 1963 the Air Force took it over and recommissioned it, naming it after the Air Force general. For decades the ship served as a missile tracker and space relay. It was used in NASA's Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo projects and the Shuttle program. The Vandenberg was the set for some of the scenes in the '90s movie Virus as the Russian MIR relay station. Soon it will become one of the world's most awesome diving spots."
The recreational limit is 130 feet. So you won't be able to look at the very bottom of the hull.
Unless you're trained by an agency that includes deeper and more adventurous diving. BSAC, for example, will certify experienced divers down to 55m on air. Decompression stops are introduced (although briefly) to entry-level divers and deco planning is an essential part of training.
To put the depth in context, one of most popular wrecks, the SS President Coolidge sits at about 70m but there are dives available for all abilities. 45m seems about right for a wreck of this size and I look forward to diving it in a few years time.