Definition of Nitrogen narcosis

Nitrogen narcosis: A condition similar to intoxication with alcohol with euphoria, loss of balance and manual dexterity, disorientation and impaired reasoning that occurs in divers below 100 feet (30 meters) who breath compressed air because of the high nitrogen content of air. Nitrogen narcosis is reversed as the gas pressure decreases and the diver returns toward the surface.

Sometimes called the rapture of the deep, a term coined in 1953 by Jacques Cousteau in his book "The Silent World."