Should We Leave The Titanic Wreck Alone?
The Titanic has captivated generations around the world since it sank on its maiden voyage in 1912. Only a handful of people have returned to such depths to witness the wreckage. Navigating the depth of the Atlantic Ocean is a challenge, but the adventurers know no limits. Beyond a point from the surface, which is said to be 3,300 ft beneath the surface, the sea is completely dark. Light simply cannot penetrate beyond this.
According to NOAA, for every 33 ft that one travels towards the bed of the ocean, the pressure increases by 14.7 pounds per square inch, which is equivalent to one atmosphere. Reaching the Titanic wreck involves descending in perpetual darkness for more than two hours, as per BBC.
What Is It Like Going To The Bottom Of The Ocean?
The journey involves steering through complete darkness for a while. Toronto-based doctor and sea explorer Joe MacInnis talked about what it's like navigating the deep sea.
The first time Joe, a famous Canadian explorer, went down 3,800 metres to see the Titanic was in 1987 along with Paul-Henri Nargeolet, the veteran pilot who was one of the five aboard the Titan submersible.
"The trip down is like going to another planet," he told Toronto Star. "And then when you see it — oh my God, the scale of it is what is so impressive. The size of the anchors and also the scale of the damage."
RMS Titanic split into two when it sank on the April 14, 1912. The stern and the bow sit separately at the bottom of the ocean.
"It’s an extraordinary experience to go down there and look, and look with reverence at what has happened, and an appreciation for the forces of the ocean," Joe said.
"The wind, waves, the cold, the current, the corrosion, and the pressures that bend steel."
The Wreck Is Disappearing?
The legendary ocean liner that hit an iceberg and succumbed to the ocean is slowly disappearing because of metal-eating bacteria.
"The ocean is taking this thing, and we need to document it before it all disappears or becomes unrecognizable," Stockton Rush, one of the Titan passengers, had told CBS.
Should We Leave The Titanic Wreck Alone?
As per CBS, Ed Kamuda, the president of the Titanic Historical Society, told The Associated Press that human activity, tourism, and expedition need to be monitored and curbed and that humans have no right to turn it into a theme park for the rich.
"Let nature take back what is hers," he said. "It's only a matter of time before it's a brown stain and a collection of pig iron on the ocean floor."
Why Is The Titanic So Fascinating?
The Titanic was one of the most opulent ships in the world at the time. The ship was marketed as unsinkable only to sink on its maiden voyage. The fact that the ship was not discovered for more than 70 years added to the mystery and when it was discovered in 1985, the curiosity surrounding the legendary vessel only increased.
"Titanic was clearly the big Mount Everest at the time,” Robert Ballard, the American oceanographer, who led the expedition that found the wreckage, told CNN Travel.
It was the biggest passenger ship measuring 269 meters, which is around 882 feet in length, making it the biggest man-made moving thing in the world.
Many high-profile individuals, the richest in the world at the time, went down with the ship. The stories from the 700 survivors also added to the fascination.
Perhaps the most famous story out of the lot is that of Margaret Brown who earned her nickname "Unsinkable Molly Brown" when he threatened the quartermaster overboard to try and turn back to look for more Titanic survivors.