Divers in Hawaii have close encounter with world's largest great white shark

Ellen Manning
<em>A team of divers had a close encounter with one of the biggest great white sharks on record (Picture: @JuanSharks/@OceanRamsey/Juan Oliphant/oneoceandiving.com via REUTERS) </em>
A team of divers had a close encounter with one of the biggest great white sharks on record (Picture: @JuanSharks/@OceanRamsey/Juan Oliphant/oneoceandiving.com via REUTERS)

These amazing pictures show a team of divers getting up close and personal with one of the biggest great white sharks on record.

The divers got close enough to the female shark, which was nearly 20ft (6m) long and is estimated to weigh around 2.5 tonnes, that they could touch it.

The close encounter happened in waters off the south shore of Oahu in Hawaii.

The great white is believed to be ‘Deep Blue’ – a shark tagged by researchers about 20 years ago and one of the biggest individuals on record.

<em>The shark is 20ft long and estimated to weigh 2.5 tonnes (Picture: @JuanSharks/@OceanRamsey/Juan Oliphant/oneoceandiving.com via REUTERS)</em>
The shark is 20ft long and estimated to weigh 2.5 tonnes (Picture: @JuanSharks/@OceanRamsey/Juan Oliphant/oneoceandiving.com via REUTERS)
<em>It is thought to be ‘Deep Blue’, one of the largest recorded sharks (Picture: @JuanSharks/@OceanRamsey/Juan Oliphant/oneoceandiving.com via REUTERS)</em>
It is thought to be ‘Deep Blue’, one of the largest recorded sharks (Picture: @JuanSharks/@OceanRamsey/Juan Oliphant/oneoceandiving.com via REUTERS)

One of the divers, Ocean Ramsey, told the Honolulu Star Advertiser that they had been filming tiger sharks feeding on the whale when the shark arrived.

“We saw a few tigers and then she came up and all the other sharks split, and she started brushing up against the boat,” she said.

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“She was just this big beautiful gentle giant wanting to use our boat as a scratching post. We went out at sunrise, and she stayed with us pretty much throughout the day.”

Ms Ramsey said the shark could be pregnant.

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