Sea Emperor

The Sea Emperor is a wreck off Boca Raton, Florida, a 171-foot (52 m) hopper barge sunk as an artificial reef in about 72 feet (22 m) of water, with dive depths of roughly 55 to 70 feet (17 to 21 m). The barge was donated as part of a fine levied on a dredging company that destroyed reef habitat off Palm Beach County.

It was filled with concrete culverts before sinking, about 1,600 tons of them. When it went down the barge flipped, scattering the culverts around the seabed and landing upside down, which created a maze of shelter. The wreck is about 45 feet (14 m) wide, and light reaches every chamber with access to the surface from each, so it can be penetrated. It is open to Open Water divers.

The site is nicknamed the Aqua Zoo. Goliath groupers, moray eels, southern stingrays and nurse sharks live here along with hundreds of other fish, and crabs, shrimp, corals and sponges cover the structure. The United Caribbean wreck lies 300 feet (90 m) to the south, and a trail of rock and coral links the two so they can be dived together.