New Images Could Reveal Key Details About Titanic Crash

In yesterday’s newsletter, we explained how new technology has allowed archaologists in Naples, Italy, to view a buried ancient civilization without actually digging into the ground.

Today, let’s take a look at the role that tech has played in providing stunning new details about what is arguably the most famous shipwreck of all time.

First of its kind

A mission by the deep-sea mapping company Magellan Ltd. began last year by collecting digital scans of the Titanic’s wreckage at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Now, more than a century since the cruise ship sank, researchers have the first full-sized scan of the entire scene.

While the prevailing story involves crashing into an iceberg, there are some nagging questions about why the supposedly unsinkable ship went down in such a spectacular — and deadly — fashion.

Scientists hope these latest images will provide some long-awaited answers.

What they discovered

The scan revealed a trove of personal belongings and a close look at the ship’s ornate decorations. Here’s an overview of the process:

• Remote-controlled boats spent hundreds of hours exploring the wreckage
• The project resulted in more than 700,000 separate images
• It all combined to provide enough information to create a 3-D recreation of the ship

Just in time

The wreckage of the Titanic has been slowly disintegrating since it sank in the early 20th century, but there appears to be enough remaining to gather some important information about the final moments of its doomed maiden voyage.

Atlantic Production CEO Anthony Geffen noted that if the scan had come much later, some crucial elements might have been lost forever, adding: "What we now have for the historical record is, before it falls apart, literally a record of everything to do with the wreck of the Titanic, which will be around forever.”

Chris Agee May 18th, 2023

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