2023-06-20 06:31:53
A submersible used to take tourists and experts to see the wreckage of the Titanic has disappeared in the Atlantic Ocean with its crew on board.
The Boston Coast Guard confirmed to the BBC that a search and rescue operation is underway off the coast of Newfoundland.
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The company that operates the missing sub said in a statement that it is “exploring and mobilizing all options” to bring the crew back to safety.
It is not known how many people were in the submersible.
“We are focused on the submersible crew members and their families,” OceanGate Expeditions said.
The company reported that it has received “extensive assistance” from “various government agencies and specialized deep-water companies” in its efforts to re-establish contact with the submersible.
“We are working for the safe return of the crew members.”
BBC.
What does OceanGate’s Titan submersible look like?
The Titan is a submersible for five people and the ability to descend to depths of 4,000 meters Its dimensions are 670 cm x 280 cm x 250 cm It has a 96-hour “life support” for a crew of five It travels at three knots, that’s regarding 5, 5 km per hour. In addition to taking tourists and experts to the Titanic wreck, it is used for site surveys and inspections, research and data collection, film and media production, and deep-sea hardware and software testing. It is equipped with an integrated platform from which the submersible launches and returns to before and following each dive.
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How deep is the Titanic
Small submersibles occasionally carry tourists and paying experts to view the wreckage of the Titanic, which sank in 1912 and lies regarding 12,000 feet below the ocean’s surface and regarding 375 miles from Newfoundland, Canada.
OceanGate charges $250,000 per person for its eight-day expedition that leaves Canada to see the famous shipwreck.
The company’s submersible has a “life support” of 96 hours for a crew of 5.
According to the OceanGate website, the submersible has a system for real-time monitoring of pressure changes and the integrity of the ship that alerts the pilot in time for him to abort the dive and return to the surface in the event that be necessary.
It is not clear how many people were on board when the submersible disappeared, but British explorer Hamish Harding wrote on Facebook on Sunday that he was going to take part in the last OceanGate expedition to the Titanic.
Hamish Harding in an image from January. (Getty Images).
Harding said they were going to attempt a dive on Sunday, following the crew left the Newfoundland city of St. John’s on Saturday.
He added that among the people who were going to participate were “a couple of legendary explorers, some of whom have made more than 30 dives on the RMS Titanic since the 1980s.”
BBC.
OceanGate Expeditions presents the voyage on its carbon fiber submersible as a “chance to step outside of everyday life and discover something truly extraordinary.”
According to the company, the submersible seats five people, which typically includes a pilot, three paying guests, and a “content expert.”
A full dive to the wreck, including descent and ascent, takes eight hours in total.
The Titanic, once the largest ship of its time, collided with an iceberg on its maiden voyage from the English town of Southampton bound for New York on April 14, 1912. Of the 2,200 passengers and crew on board, more than 1,500 died.
The remains of the liner have been extensively explored since they were discovered in 1985.
They are in two parts, with the bow and stern separated by regarding 800 meters. A huge field of debris surrounds the two parts of the boat.
The Boston Coast Guard is assisting in the search for the submersible. (Getty Images).
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What might have happened to the lost submersible?
By Pallab Ghosh, BBC News Science Correspondent
Professor Alistair Greig, from University College London, is an expert on submersibles. He has worked through a number of scenarios for where the missing sub might be.
One is that he dropped a “drop weight” following an emergency, to come up to the surface.
“If there was a power or communication failure, this might have happened, and the submersible would be floating on the surface waiting to be found,” the expert said.
Another scenario, he explains, might be that the submersible’s hull was compromised and there was a leak. “So the prognosis is not good.”
If you’ve sunk to the seabed and can’t get back up under your own power, your options, according to Professor Greig, are very limited.
“While the submersible might still be intact, if it is deeper than 200 meters, there are very few vessels that can go that deep, and certainly not divers.
“Vehicles designed for navy submarine rescue certainly can’t get anywhere near the depth of the Titanic.
“And even if they might, I highly doubt they might attach themselves to the hatch of the tourist submersible,” Greig said.
The remains of the Titanic are 3,800 meters deep. (Archyde.com).
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