--- title: "This suit would allow humans to breathe like fish" date: "2018-11-01" modified: "2020-10-22" authors: - name: "Shannon Corbeil" job_title: "Contributor, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/scorbeil/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-tactical/this-suit-would-allow-humans-to-breathe-like-fish/" categories: - "Military News" - "Technology" --- # This suit would allow humans to breathe like fish ![]() I'm not a scientist, but I feel confident about this statement: Humans require oxygen to live. The thing is, we don't necessarily need the oxygen to come from *air,* though that is how our lungs are designed to receive it. --- When submerging underwater for extended periods of time, humans have devised ways to bring oxygen with us so we don't drown and stuff, but there's a problem. Breathing air while under the enormous pressure of deep water makes nitrogen in our bodies dissolve, creating air pockets in the blood and organs and causing decompression sickness. Retired heart and lung surgeon and inventor Arnold Lange has a solution: liquid breathing. ![]() Lange [has a number of patents for designs]() that would allow a human to essentially breathe like a fish. His scuba suit would allow a human to [breathe "liquid air" made of a formula that has been highly enriched with oxygen molecules](). Lange's inventions would allow divers to descend to deeper water depths without getting the bends. ### Also read: [Here's the science behind how submarines dive and resurface]() This isn't a new concept. In the medical field, liquid ventilation is used for premature infants, whose lungs haven't developed to safely transition from the liquid environment of the womb. Navy SEALs reportedly experimented with liquid ventilation in the 1980s, and the need for safe evacuations from submarines has been a high priority ever since men submerged ships. Today, the [U.S. Navy recruits deep sea divers]() for search and rescue missions, diving salvage operations, and even performing ship maintenance. ![]() *That moment when you realize it's called gillyweed because it gives you gills. (Image via Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | Warner Bros. Pictures)* Liquid breathing is by no means a perfected science (and not just because in order to dispose of the CO2 humans normally exhale, deep water liquid breathing requires an [artificial gill in the femoral artery]() \*shudder\*), but its medical — and military — applications [urge scientists on](). [And mermaids, I guess?]() ![]() *Fun fact: Christopher Columbus legit thought manatees were mermaids when he first saw one and he was disappointed because he thought mermaids would be hotter. (Image via GIPHY)* ## Author Shannon Corbeil has worked for We Are The Mighty as a digital video producer, writer, and host, as well as a staff writer covering military history, trivia, and valor. Shannon is a fierce veteran advocate, covering the achievements of members of the military community and volunteering in multiple veteran non-profit organizations, including Pin-Ups for Vets and Warriors for Peace Theatre. Her undergraduate degree is in Humanities and Philosophy and her Masters is in Strategic Intelligence. A screenwriter and actor recently seen on SEAL TEAM and THE ROOKIE, Shannon writes about exciting projects in the entertainment industry. She is an alum of the Writers Guild Foundation Veterans Writing Project, a Finalist in the Disney TV Writing Fellowship, an inaugural fellow for the STARZ/VME #TakeTheLead Program, and has performed at the Geffen Playhouse and Kennedy Center as a writer, dancer, singer, and actor. As a U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer, Shannon supported the 25th Fighter Squadron at Osan Air Base, South Korea, and conducted Cyber Threat Analysis at the National Security Agency. Her work has been seen in Business Insider, Task & Purpose, Military.com, and various other publications. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Bluesky]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()