Barotrauma is injury that occurs as a direct result of changes in ambient pressure. Boyles Law states that at constant temperature, a volume of a gas is inversely proportional to the ambient pressure.

It is natural to think that accidents will happen only to other skydivers, those who court disaster by idiotically violating every rule in the book. And although it is true that they will take most of the heat, even the most experienced and responsible skydivers are not immune to a bad roll of the dice. That’s why it’s important to master the few basic skills you learned during training so you can stay calm under pressure.