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Aerial view of Helengeli island's tree-lined shore rising from a shallow reef flat — North Malé Atoll

North Malé Atoll · Maldives · Seamount

Nassimo Thila

Pinnacles, sea fans and fish on the thila's north side

Area photo: Genet (Diskussion) · CC BY-SA 3.0

Nassimo Thila is a fish-heavy thila whose north side carries several pinnacles, coral formations and sea fans — that is where the main action is. Average depth is 16 m with a maximum of 34 m, and the current runs hard enough that the local advice is to treat it as a dive for experienced divers.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Nassimo Thila: typical dive 16–34 m (52–112 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit16 m34 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

4.2883° N, 73.5333° EPublished position for this site.

The dive

The structure that matters is on the north of the thila: several pinnacles stand off the main reef, and this is where the main fish are, along with coral formations and sea fans. The dive works that northern side, with an average depth of 16 m and a listed maximum of 34 m, staying on the pinnacles where the life concentrates.

Current is the reason the site carries an experienced-divers tag: the Scubago page calls it a wonderful dive for experienced divers due to the strong current, while wannadive's log rates a medium 1 to 2 knots on a typical day. Visibility is modest at 5 to 10 m, which concentrates the dive on the pinnacles rather than the wide view.

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for Nassimo Thila
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
PrimePrimePrimePrimeGoodFairFairFairFairFairGoodPrime

Season follows North Malé Atoll: December to April is dry with gentle breezes; late May to July is the weakest stretch, when most liveaboards leave the atoll.

Know before you go

  • The current can run strong across the thila; brief the drift with your operator and keep the group together around the northern pinnacles.

Sources

  1. Nassimo Thila — Scubago
  2. Nassimo Thila — wannadive.net

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