The people diving with whales who could eat them alive

Sperm whales are the biggest living things with teeth, and they seem to "talk" to each other. To decipher their messages, scientists are free-diving with them

A decade ago, Fabrice Schnöller was an engineer working on systems for tracking sharks.

Then, in 2007, he went on a sailing trip to the island of Mauritius, where something happened that would change the course of his life.

As his boat approached the coast, giant towers of steam began exploding out of the water. One by one the columns closed in, until they surrounded the whole boat.

Curious as to the source of this strange ocean phenomenon, Schnöller grabbed his snorkling equipment and a camera, and jumped in.

Diving down beneath the ship, Schnöller's ears were bombarded by what sounded like underwater explosions, growing louder the deeper he went.

At first he feared the boat had suffered a mechanical failure. But as he circled around, he began to sense that he was not alone.

Glancing downwards, Schnöller froze.

Out of the darkness, a series of giant dark monolithic shapes were heading directly towards him. It was a pod of sperm whales accelerating towards the surface.

As they approached, the sounds grew louder and louder until they penetrated his flesh like an X-ray. Schnöller felt the warm vibrations passing through his skeleton from every angle.

The whales surrounded him, staring with large, unblinking eyes. At more than 60 feet in length and weighing approximately 125,000 pounds, they dwarfed him.

But rather than swallowing the helpless Schnöller in one giant gulp, the whales appeared to be deeply intrigued.

After scanning him, the rhythm structure of their sounds began to change.

Schnöller later realised that these were the patterns that we believe sperm whales use to communicate and send information. The whales appeared to be speaking to him.

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