The last contact with the OceanGate Titan boat, which set off towards the wreck, was made on Sunday around the 105th minute of the voyage, subsequent attempts to establish communication were unsuccessful. There were five passengers on board the tourist vessel. The commercial operator of the missing vessel, OceanGate Expeditions, is involved in the search, as well as navy units seconded by the US and Canadian governments.
A boat sailing to the wreck of the Titanic is missing. Who was on board?
A ticket for an eight-day trip to the wreck of the Titanic costs USD 250,000 per person (or PLN 1 million). A pilot, one expert and three commercial customers are usually on board. The remains of the famous passenger ship rest about 600 km off the coast of Newfoundland. The two parts of the liner lie on the ocean floor at a depth of 3,800 m and are 800 m apart. According to OceanGate, diving to the wreck, including descent and ascent, takes eight hours. Each of the expeditions also has an additional research goal – members of the expedition later report the progressing corrosion and decomposition of the wreck. The first OceanGate expedition took place in 2021.
Among the passengers of the Titan, which went missing last Sunday, were 58-year-old businessman and explorer Hamish Harding, British businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, a former diver and head of the research department of the company that has the rights to the wreck of the Titanic Paul-Henry Nargeolet and Stockton Rush – president of OceanGate.
Hamish Harding/billionaire receives his astronaut badge Felix Kunze/AP
Hamish Harding is the CEO of the international company Action Aviation, an explorer who has been to space and holds three Guinness World Records. One of them won for the longest time spent at full ocean depth in the deepest part of the Mariana Trench, he reports. Harding has been on several expeditions to the South Pole, once with former American astronaut Buzz Aldrin. In 2022, he flew into space on the fifth Blue Origin passenger summer.
OceanGate Titan rescue operation. What is known?
The OceanGate Titan is about the size of a small bus – seven meters long, weighs 10,432 kg and can travel at a speed of 5.5 km per hour. The ship’s hull, connecting two titanium composite domes, is made of carbon fiber, and the whole is powered by four engines. The US Coast Guard estimates that the OceanGate Titan has an oxygen supply of 70-96 hours, which gives rescuers until about Friday. The search for the ship and crew began on Sunday – it is still not known what led to the loss of communication.
OceanGate Titan AP via OceanGate Expeditions
The search is hampered by the depth at which the wreck of the Titanic rests, the great distance from the shoreline, unfavorable weather conditions and the lack of information about the condition of the missing Titan and whether the on-board instrumentation is working, he reports.
The search operation is carried out in two ways. Part of the rescue team is monitoring the surface of the ocean in case Titan resurfaces and communication systems fail. The search was sent two planes. The rest is focused on sonar probing of the deep sea.
Professor Alistair Greig of University College London has developed several potential scenarios. One assumes that there has been an emergency ascent and the ship is adrift on the surface of the ocean awaiting rescue. A less optimistic version concerns a leak into the hulls – the prognosis in this case is not good. If the Titan has sunk to the bottom of the ocean and cannot ascend on its own, the possibilities will be very limited, because few ships are able to descend so low. Divers are out of the question, and military submarines are not designed to withstand the pressure of the ocean floor.
When did the Titanic sink?
RMS Titanic was commissioned by the British shipping company White Star Line – construction began on March 31, 1909. Before her maiden voyage, the public considered her an “unsinkable ship” – the largest and most luxurious in her class. It was 268 meters long, the deck was 29.41 meters wide, and its height was 53.34 meters. Titanic was launched on May 31, 1911. The Titanic made its maiden voyage to New York on April 10, 1912. There were 2,207 passengers and crew on board at the time. Four days later the ship collided with an iceberg and sank. Only 712 survived the disaster.
The shipwreck was not found until September 1, 1985. After the initial inspection, it was decided that the Titanic would be best left at the place of drowning, i.e. out of respect for the victims. After 70 years under water, there was no chance of getting the ship out without major damage. Scientists regularly check the condition of the Titanic and report every year that the wreck is being destroyed more and more. The recording from 2022 shows that the collapsed mast has collapsed and the crow’s nest has already disappeared. Scientists have detected that the entire wreck is covered with bacteria (called Halomonas titanicae) that slowly decompose the metal – it is estimated that by 2030 the Titanic will break up, and then its remains will disappear – rowe a few years ago “Business Insider”.
Source: Gazeta
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