Joseph Dituri (born 8 December 1967) is an American biomedical researcher, and former Naval Commander.[1][2] Also known as "Dr. Deep Sea".,[3][4][5][6] his research includes life support equipment design, high carbon dioxide environments, hypobaric medicine, and traumatic brain injury. He has made contributions in the field as a researcher, speaker, lecturer, and writer, including Exploration and Mixed Gas Diving Encyclopedia: The Tao of Survival Underwater.[7]
In 1967, Dituri was born in Long Island, New York.[8] After graduating from Lindenhurst Senior High School,[9] he went on to obtain his B.S. in Computer Science at the University of South Carolina in 1995.[1] He obtained his M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in 2006.[1] In 2018, he received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of South Florida.[1][10]
In 1985, Dituri enlisted in the United States Navy.[11] He consistently served aboard naval vessels and at shore stations, engaging in tasks such as hyperbaric system maintenance, saturation diving, search and rescue operations, and ship repair.[1][11][12][13][10] In 1995, he was commissioned into the Special Operations Officer pipeline and after serving three diving tours, he became the Engineering Duty Officer.[11]
Upon completing his M.S. in 2006,[1] he assumed the role of Officer-in-Charge at the Deep Submergence Unit (DSU) Diving Systems Detachment (DSD).[11] Under his leadership, DSD certified the 2,000 feet sea water Atmospheric Diving System for deployment across the fleet.[11] Following the implementation and initial testing phase, Commander Dituri's team introduced the Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System into Naval service, deploying it on two international engagements.[11]
His final position in the United States Navy was in the Research Development and Acquisition Center – Maritime Systems at Special Operations Command.[11] He served as the Chief Engineer, Program Manager for Undersea Systems Technical and Certification Program, as well as Deputy Program Manager for Combat Craft.[11] After 28 years of active service, Dituri retired in 2013.[14]
Dituri is a biomedical researcher in the field of life support equipment design, high carbon dioxide environments, hypobaric medicine, and traumatic brain injury.[1][2] During his career, he has been a contributing author, co-author, and author in publications, books, and articles including: Secrets in Depth,[15] Hyperbaric Medicine Practice,[16] “Over The Counter” Remedy For DCIs,[17] My Daddy Wears a Different Kind of Suit to Work,[18] and more.
Dituri is a biomedical engineering lecturer at the University of South Florida[5][1] and instructor of hyperbaric medicine. He serves as a Director of the International Board of Undersea Medicine (IBUM).[2][19]
Dituri spent 100 days living underwater at the Jules' Undersea Lodge in Key Largo, Florida.[2] During his stay, Dituri earned a spot in the Guinness World Records for the longest time spent living underwater in a fixed habitat.[20][3][21][6]
Dituri was granted a United States Patent for a device and system he designed during his Ph.D. dissertation on systems and methods for monitoring heart rate variability.[22] The processing device monitors heart beat data, and executes a heart rate variability program to detect physiological distress, essential in the prevention of hypercapnia, hyperoxia, and decompressive stress[23]
Dituri is a certified pilot of the U.S. Navy ADS2000 (Atmospheric Diving System), also known as the One Atmosphere Suit.[24]
Dituri was invited to inspect the Deepsea Challenger that James Cameron piloted to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, at a depth of 10,908 metres (35,787 ft)[10][25]