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Mammoth great white shark may soon be a mommy shark, too-too-too-too-too-too

In awe at the size of this lass. Absolute unit.

Jackson Ryan Former Science Editor
Jackson Ryan was CNET's science editor, and a multiple award-winning one at that. Earlier, he'd been a scientist, but he realized he wasn't very happy sitting at a lab bench all day. Science writing, he realized, was the best job in the world -- it let him tell stories about space, the planet, climate change and the people working at the frontiers of human knowledge. He also owns a lot of ugly Christmas sweaters.
Jackson Ryan
2 min read
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Cheese! Ocean Ramsey poses with Deep Blue off Hawaii.

Juan Oliphant/Screenshot by CNET

Remember the mammoth Carcharadon named Deep Blue? If you don't, here's a refresher.

Thought to be the world's biggest great white shark, Deep Blue swam alongside diver and marine biologist Ocean Ramsey this week off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii. Yes, cage-free. A decomposing sperm whale apparently attracted the gargantuan shark to the area, the first time she's been spotted near Hawaii.  

At almost 21 feet (6.4 meters) long, Deep Blue is about 1.3 times longer than your average Tesla, which means she can fit at least a family of five in that belly. Not that she would, of course! Ramsey told the Honolulu Star Advertiser on Wednesday that the great white came up and brushed the side of her boat, before calling the shark a "big, beautiful, gentle giant" which, from the images, seems to look true.

To understand the sheer scale of the absolute unit, underwater photographer Juan Oliphant posted to his Instagram account this image of Ramsey swimming underneath the huge elasmobranch.

Believed to be more than 50 years old, Deep Blue may even be pregnant, according to CBS News. Ramsey told the Star Advertiser that the shark is "shockingly wide" and may have a baby shark (doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo) swelling inside her. 

On Wednesday, Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resources released a statement about the sperm whale carcass attracting a ton of attention from feeding sharks.

"We're asking people to stay out of the water around this carcass.  We don't want anyone to get hurt if a shark swimming around the carcass mistakes them as food," said Jason Redulla, chief of the department's Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement.

Badass photos from GoPro cameras

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