The night of April 15, 1912 is a one that will live with the world forever, and the night that changed everything. The early 20th century was a lot more naive than the world of today, and when a disaster occurred, it shocked everyone to their very core. The earth changing event was when a luxurious ship, with over 2200 people on board, struck an iceberg and sank into the waters of the North Atlantic. The name of this doomed ship was the RMS Titanic, and she would forever be known for riches, luxury, and certain death. Since the sinking in 1912, the Titanic has been headlines for various reasons, and it did not take long for people who got an idea about finding the grand ship and raising her from her watery grave. However, despite all the hundreds of ideas that people had to find Titanic, it would not be until 1985 before someone finally had the talent and technology to locate her. The name of the explorer who found the infamous ship was Dr. Robert Ballard, and the discovery of Titanic opened her up to exploration that is still happening today. The latest Titanic exploration took place in August, and the condition of the most famous ship in the world, has everyone shocked at how bad her condition currently is.
1. A Long List of Titanic Explorations Since Her Discovery
On September 1, 1985, in the early hours of the morning, Dr. Robert Ballard was in his bunk trying to get some rest after another long night of staring at the bottom of the ocean floor. Ballard, and his crew, had come to the spot where the Titanic had gone down to try and see if he could find any signs of the most famous ship in the world that had gone down on her maiden voyage. The crew had been in the area where Titanic sank for two months trying to find any sign of the ship, and after so long, the crew’s morale was low. However, what Ballard didn’t know was that this would be the night that changed everything, and a 1 am visitor took him to the video room where images of the Titanic’s debris was on the screens. The dream of finding Titanic had come true for Dr. Robert Ballard, and now the world would finally know the fate of the most famous ship to sink in history. Ballard’s expedition was the first in a long list of over 20 expeditions that would take place to see Titanic, and over the years, the effects of being underwater would take its toll on this magnificent ship.
2. The Last Manned Expedition to Titanic Took Place in 2005
Aside from Dr. Robert Ballard, there has been one person that has been to the Titanic‘s resting place the most, and that person is movie director, James Cameron. Cameron first became interested in the Titanic when he was writing his movie by the same name, and that interest lead to him taking a submarine down to the bottom of the ocean. Cameron, and his crew, were curious about certain aspects of Titanic, and used technology to explore her inner depths like no one has ever before. However, it was not just out of scientific curiosity that sent James Cameron to the Titanic’s resting place, he was filming a documentary called Last Mysteries of the Titanic. This was the third and last time that James Cameron went to see his beloved ship, but the DVD releases of his expeditions will live on forever and so will the images of the interior no one has ever captured before.
3. New Exploration of Titanic Shows A Shocking Level of Deterioration
The last trip down to Titanic took place 14 years ago, so the question everyone is asking is why now? Why did another manned submersible go down to see Titanic? The answer is a man named Victor Vescovo, and he is on a mission to map the bottom of the five oceans using a submersible vehicle equipped with 4K resolution cameras. Vescovo was in the submersible, and he traveled over two miles down to see the great ship up close and personal. According to Vescovo, “The most amazing moment came when I was going along the side of the Titanic and the bright lights of the submersible, the first time when they reflected off of a portal and came right back. It was like the ship was winking at me. It was really amazing.” While Vescovo was amazed at the size of Titanic, what really shocked him was the shape that the ship is now in after 107 years below the surface of the ocean. Joining Victor Vescovo on the expedition was Titanic historian, Park Stephenson, who agreed that the ship is in bad condition, according to Stephenson, That whole deck house on that side is collapsing, taking with it the state rooms, and that deterioration is going to continue advancing.” Stephenson also pointed out that the most iconic images from the ship are now gone such as Captain Smith’s bathtub. The bad news is that eventually, the RMS Titanic will be gone, and the only trace of her that will remain is a pile of rust in the shape of the ship. Though despite the inevitable demise of Titanic, she will always live on in images, videos, and the artifacts recovered from the ship.
