Rare footage of the Titanic wreck on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean has been shared more than a century after the ship sank after hitting an iceberg.
Filmed by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) just months after explorers discovered the Titanic wreck in 1985, the footage includes images of various parts of the ship: the bow, decks, and equipment. Captured at a depth of 3 kilometers below the ocean’s surface, the majority of the 80-minute video has never been published before, revealing the interior of the ship as well as marine life swimming around it, CNN reported on February 16.
The bow of the Titanic.
Although authorities conducted several searches for the Titanic after it sank on its maiden voyage, it wasn’t until September 1985 that a team of experts led by Robert Ballard, in collaboration with the French Institute for Marine Exploration Research (IFEMER), discovered the wreck. In 1985, WHOI developed new imaging techniques, including Argo, a camera-towed vehicle connected to the research vessel Knorr, capturing the first images of the ship at depths exceeding 3,780 meters, according to the institute’s announcement.
The following year, the WHOI research team undertook the first expedition to observe the wreck, utilizing the three-person submersible named Alvin and the newly developed remote-operated vehicle Jason Jr. The footage released on February 16 documents the 1986 expedition, “marking the first time humans have observed the ill-fated ship since 1912,” according to WHOI.
The Titanic was once thought to be unsinkable when it was built and was the largest passenger ship in operation at that time. The ship struck an iceberg on April 14, 1912, in the Atlantic Ocean during its maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York. Over 1,500 people perished in the disaster, raising outrage over the lack of lifeboats.
The WHOI research team found the ship broken into two halves off the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada, on September 1, 1985. During 11 dives in July 1986, the footage was captured using a camera mounted on the manned submersible and the small remote-operated vehicle that could navigate through tight spaces. WHOI released the special footage to commemorate the film Titanic by director James Cameron, which won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
