South Padre Island, Texas - Allison, a green sea turtle with only one flipper, has been going around and around and around for most of her life.
But swimming in tight circles is tough for a five-year-old turtle whose life expectancy is about 150 years.
Allison was set straight on Wednesday when researchers outfitted her in a black neoprene suit with a carbon-fibre dorsal fin on the back that allows her to glide with other turtles.
"That's a sea turtle doing what a sea turtle does," said Dave Cromwell, a worker who watched the turtle's new moves at Sea Turtle Inc, a group that rehabilitates injured turtles.
The fin on the suit, which resembles a wetsuit covering about three-quarters of her body, acts like a rudder and gives her stability. Allison can change direction by varying the strokes of her front right flipper, the lone survivor of what rescuers believe was a shark attack.
Sea Turtle Inc curator Jeff George said turtles with only one flipper are usually euthanised because they would struggle to reach the surface for air.
Allison, who arrived at the rescue centre in 2005, was given a slim chance of survival but recovered from her injuries and wormed her way into the hearts of her rescuers who tried to find a way to help the circling turtle.
"The whole reason we're doing this is to improve her quality of life," said Tom Wilson, a 21-year-old intern who came up with the idea of the suit.
Wilson's idea applied the physics of canoe paddling. The scientists have developed equations that will allow them to tailor new suits and fins because Allison could grow to 272kg.
Even though Allison will never return to the sea, the groundbreaking work will make her an "ambassador" for an endangered species.
For now, the triumph that the turtle could swim like the others was enough for those at the rescue centre: Cromwell said watchers wept the first time Allison dived to feed. - Sapa-AP