Leatherback Turtle Dive Physiology Simulator (2D)

The 3D Leatherback Turtle Deepdive animates a leatherback's record-setting descent toward 1280 m but tracks only where it is and how many jellyfish it has eaten. This 2D companion asks the physiological question the 3D scene never answers: how does a reptile actually survive that dive? It models a finite oxygen store split by a bradycardic dive response — heart rate collapsing from a resting ~25 bpm to as low as 4-6 bpm underwater to stretch every breath — against a body that must stay warm through counter-current heat exchange in its flippers (gigantothermy) as the water around it falls toward 4°C. Push the dive past the aerobic dive limit and metabolism flips to anaerobic, forcing an immediate, involuntary ascent. Turn gigantothermy off to watch a reptile-sized ectotherm's core temperature collapse and its safe dive time evaporate.