Cousteau Grandson Spending October Underwater

While you're spending October planning what candy you'll hand out on Halloween, Fabien Cousteau will be spending the month underwater. He's aiming to spend a record-breaking 31 days in the deep blue, surfacing on October 31, on the 50th anniversary of his grandfather Jacques Cousteau's record-setting 30 days underwater in the Red Sea. The third-generation oceanographer and a team of five others will stay at NOAA's Aquarius habitat, a 43-foot cylindrical lab off the Florida Keys that sits 50 to 60 feet below the surface—the last undersea lab still in operation, Reuters reports. The adventure, which will take place twice as deep as the elder Cousteau's, will be broadcast 24 hours a day, the Tampa Tribune adds.

While there, the "Mission 31" team will go diving outside the lab and will also explore on underwater motorcycles, collecting information about the ocean's health as well as the impact living underwater has on their bodies. "We get to see things in the way you would if you were immersed like a fish," Cousteau says. They'll look for evidence of climate change and test new equipment, the Florida Keys Keynoter reports. They'll also Skype with school children, the Weather Channel, and International Space Station astronauts; make a 3D IMAX documentary; and entertain VIP guests including Richard Branson and, tentatively, will.i.am. As for the nitty-gritty, Aquarius does have a shower, bathroom, and air conditioning in addition to six bunks, where they'll sleep just five to six hours per night. (More Jacques Cousteau stories.)