This Group Is All About The Fear Of Submerged Man-Made Objects, And Here Are 30 Of The Scariest Pics That Will Make You Want To Swim Away

Imagine that you’re swimming out into your local lake. You’re a capable swimmer, you know this body of water like the back of your hand, and you feel confident while athletically stroking through water enveloped by the early morning mist. You decide to dive underwater for a bit—you know, for fun—and that’s when you see it: the shadowy silhouette of something huge, rusted, and covered in seaweed. You panic, rise to the surface, and swim to the shore. Trembling. Terrified.

What even was that?! That, my dear Pandas, was but a taste of submechanophobia, the fear of fully or partially submerged man-made objects, from sunken ships and propellers to sculptures and buildings. The r/submechanophobia subreddit, a vast community of 375k people, is a place to explore that deep, lurking fear in photo format.

Let’s plunge in, shall we? Remember to upvote the pics that scared the bejesus outta ya as you’re swimming through this list. We’d also love to hear your thoughts about the photos, so if you’re brave enough, you can dive to the very bottom and drop us a line in the comment section.

One of the moderators of the 'Submechanophobia' subreddit, redditor Pubocyno, gave us a glimpse into the exciting underwater currents of the community, shared their take on tackling our fears, and revealed the very interesting origin of the phobia itself. Pubocyno told Bored Panda that they're actually a very active wreck diver in their free time! What's more, they create detailed shipwreck maps.

"I like to spend much time underwater. There is this sense of awe when you discover underwater wrecks for the first time, a little bit of excitement and a little bit of terror—not to forget the sense of history, especially in those wrecks you know have had casualties," Pubocyno said that even though they don't have submechanophobia themselves, they nonetheless have a "great respect" for all things underwater. You'll find the moderator's other insights deeper into the article, dear Readers.

Bored Panda also reached out to Alastair Bailey, a DSD Divemaster who has done a whopping 500 dives while working at the Byron Bay Dive Centre in Australia. Check out what he had to say below as well.