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30 December 2009
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Question from Kathryn Dransfield: Was the series mainly filmed in the ocean around the gulf of Mexico?

The Blue Planet Team: No, it was filmed all around the world in over 200 locations.

Question from James: How deep were the deepest pictures shown on tonight's programme?

The Blue Planet Team: The deepest images came from the hot vents around 4,000 metres down.

Question from Edward Mills: How much does it cost to use the submersable?

The Blue Planet Team: Over 20,000 dollars a day - however, working closely with scientists for whom we provided the cameras, we never paid that price.

Question from Roland Millward: What's the most dangerous part of the dive?

The Blue Planet Team: Nearing the sea bed when there's a risk of getting snagged.

Question from Howard Latimer: Was it harder to film in any particular ocean? Why was that?

The Blue Planet Team: Not really. The deep sea is a pretty uniform habitat all around the world.

Question from Ken: If dead whales fall to the ocean floor why does the pressure not cause them to implode?

The Blue Planet Team: They would definitely get compressed, however, most of their bodies consist of water which doesn't get crushed.

Question from Nathan Wren: At the beginning of tonight's program there was a fish with supposedly the biggest teeth in the ocean. How large would the actual fish be?

The Blue Planet Team: The fish itself is only 15 cms long.

Question from Tony Beach: Are there any strong currents in the very deep sea?

The Blue Planet Team: Not really. The currents are all quite sluggish at that depth because there is no wind down there.

Question from Ev Tait: What were the biggest frustrations in the making of the programme?

The Blue Planet Team: In the deep ocean, the biggest challenge was trying to get beautiful images using a submersible. There were about 15 cameramen and 12 in the production team.

Question from Laura: What causes the fish to flash with lights?

The Blue Planet Team: Bioluminescence - ie light that they produce themselves.

Question from Mike Harris: Did all of your equipment work O.K ?

The Blue Planet Team: No. Most of it didn't most of the time.

Question from Chris Wall: Am I right in assuming that all life that far deep in the ocean are blind?

The Blue Planet Team: Not really - many animals have surprisingly large eyes which are probably used for looking at bioluminescence.

Question from Dan Newman: How can sharks survive in an environment with such little food?

The Blue Planet Team: The sleeper shark is a very slow moving animal which is probably an adaptation to limited food supplies.

Question from Kevin Morrison: My mum says I have to go to bed - Could anyone help me with the maximum depth of the gulf of Mexico please?

The Blue Planet Team: Sleep well. But sorry, we don't know the answer to your question. We went to at least a 1,000 meters so it must be more than that.

Question from Atul Thakor: Does it get warmer as u get deeper after a certain depth as the waters heated by the earth's core?

The Blue Planet Team: It's very hot just by the hot vents, hundreds of degrees centigrade, but within just a few metres, the temperature drops rapidly to less than 5 degrees.

Question from ev tait: How does the submersible survive the pressure?

The Blue Planet Team: It is highly reinforced, and most importantly, it's very small. Larger military submarines cannot dive very deep.

Question from Amy Roberts: Do you breathe normal air in the submersible or is it a mixture, like in diver's tanks?

The Blue Planet Team: It's normal air. It is kept fresh by "scrubbers" that remove carbon dioxide as you breathe it.

Question from Nathan Wren: Like on a plane, do your ears pop when you dive in the submersable?

The Blue Planet Team: No, because there is no change in pressure inside the submersible.

Question from Al Shaw: What would happen in an emergency in the sub? how quickly can you get to the surface? Could something come and get you?

The Blue Planet Team: The submersibles are specially designed so that the chamber containing the observers can be released to float back to the surface.

Question from Shadow Fish: Is it cold in the submersable?

The Blue Planet Team: Yes, it does get cold.

Question from Ivan Bruce: How long did it take to descend to the deepest part of the ocean that you went to?

The Blue Planet Team: A couple of hours at least.

Question from Laura: Was there any emergencies while filming?

The Blue Planet Team: No

Question from Nicky Diamond: Are there any physical side effects of going this deep?

The Blue Planet Team: No, other than cramp from being squashed into such a small space.

Question from Jacqui: Did you know that the things that have never been seen before....had never been seen before, or was that a later find?

The Blue Planet Team: We relied entirely on the expertise of scientists we worked with.

Question from al shaw: How do you go to the loo when ur in the sub?

The Blue Planet Team: There's no on board toilet. Men use a bottle, women have to hold on or use a special pot.

Question from Nathan Wren: Did you discover any new species other than the hairy angler?

The Blue Planet Team: Yes the dumbo octopus we think.

Question from Annie M: Do you ever get claustrophobic in the sub?

The Blue Planet Team: Some people do but we didn't.

Question from p b: Did David Attenborough go on the underwater expeditions personally?

The Blue Planet Team: No. David's principle role on the series has been the narration.

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