Virtually raising the Titanic
On August 18th, a collaborative team from RMS Titanic Inc., the company that has salvage rights to the wreck of the Titanic, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will be returning to the wreck site not to recover artifacts, but to probe the entire debris field with the eventual goal of creating a 3D virtual rendering of exactly what is left of the ship 2.5 miles under the North Atlantic.
It’ll be the first time the wreck is recorded like an archaeological site instead of explored for salvage booty (and to make the incredibly crappy intro of an incredibly crappy movie out of the underwater footage). The careful mapping will contribute greatly to our understanding of the historical Titanic and will also pinpoint the wreck’s current state of preservation. The plan is to share the virtual rendering with the public once it’s complete.
The “dream team” of archaeologists, oceanographers and other scientists want to get the best assessment yet on the two main sections of the ship, which have been subjected to fierce deep-ocean currents, salt water and intense pressure.
Gallo said while the rate of Titanic’s deterioration is not known, the expedition approaches the mission with a sense of urgency.
“We see places where it looks like the upper decks are getting thin, the walls are thin, the ceilings may be collapsing a bit,” he said. “We hear all these anecdotal things about the ship is rusting away, it’s collapsing on itself. No one really knows.”
The expedition will use imaging technology and sonar devices that never have been used before on the Titanic wreck and to probe nearly a century of sediment in the debris field to seek a full inventory of the ship’s artifacts.
“We’re actually treating it like a crime scene,” Gallo said. “We want to know what’s out there in that debris field, what the stern and the bow are looking like.”
The expedition will be based on the RV Jean Charcot, a 250-foot research vessel with a crew of 20. Three submersibles and the latest sonar, acoustic and filming technology will also be part of the expedition.
They will also take samples of the iron hull, which they hope will answer some questions about how the ship went down. The 3D mapping of the debris field will also provide new information about what happened the night of April 14, 1912. Scientists will be able to examine in detail parts of the ship that haven’t been seen before because they’re jammed into the mud on the seafloor.
The pictures the team retrieves from the submarines will be compared to the pictures taken on RMS Titanic’s first expedition to the wreck 25 years ago. They’ll be able to gauge the rate of decay over that period, and continue to gather data that might be key to conservation on future mapping expeditions.
RMS Titanic, Inc., is still working on a website dedicated to the expedition, but they already have a Facebook page up where you can ask questions and follow the expedition.
This is very exciting news, can’t wait to see the final products
Me either, especially the 3D mapping of the debris field. All the footage has concentrated on the remains on the ship.
Please, I am related to a women on the Titanic! They should really hire me to speak about the sinking! I’m an expert you know!
your right
thats really sad to hear but I would like to learn more about the titanic i watch the movie all the time it makes me cry everytime I see it
no way ! my great,great aunt died on the titanic too
Dearest Typer,
If you are so confused… DO SOME RESEARCH ON THE SINKING! You can also check out a book in a library about The Titanic! Don’t be an idiot!
ok whp ever you are you dont have to be a a hole about this goss let us people be dont have to get all mad about it just let the people be confued and let them do what ever they want okkkkkk!!!thanks
nice great blog but sad
Well if the blogs so sad…you should get off this sight and get on something much happier! The Titanic happened for a reason, also it left us spectacular artifacts! I’m an expert on the Titanic you know!
An arrogant expert more like it.
jacob luttman, sorry if i sound rude.
but i have been reading through, your comments are really annoying. trying to correct everyone. i do agree that titanic is sad. but people have their point on veiw and you have yours so just let it go already..
lighten up!
These virtual emotions are stupid. You really need to list facts on the Titanic, instead of happy and sad! These emotions are truly stupid!
Jacob Luttman, lighten up!
To be fair, the emoticon-only posts are pretty vacuous.
it is grat but ye it is sad as well
Please…Im 54 and I can even type correctly! Perhaps you should join a typing club! Thank you! Do not let me catch you being sloppy again, Its one of my pet-peeves!
will okk person who ever yu are let us kidsz be n stop trying to be a teach and correct us!!mkkk thnkss
Dear,
You can not say it was the most amazing ship wreck… For I am sure you have not done research on other shipwrecks, Therefore you can’t say that!
yea evn i wantd 2 see…
The Titanic is truly an amazing artifact! I went to the museum and thought it was pleasing to some, however i thought that you all could have been more detailed in the writing. Overall I thought the museum could have been better! Thank you for the memorable visit though! I enjoyed it very much! May I also state that I am a close relative to one of the passengers on the Titanic. She really fascinated me, and although i could not find her name, strangely I did find the life-boat she was on! Life boat number fourteen! Being a relative is such a honor! Kudos to all you Titanic lover like me!
That’s fascinating. Did you know you were related to a Titanic survivor before you began to study it?
How interesting that you are related to a survivor. I’m sure the stories they had to tell kept you in awe from start to finish. I too am a Titanic lover and enjoy each and every bit of new information that they learn. I love that they are still trying to figure out the deep dark secrets of that devastating night. Thank you for sharing!
i think your making it up
thats all you can say
I have been facinated by the events surrounding the Titanic since I was a very young girl and at the age of 32 I’m still as facinated! Every day they seem to be learning something new and I think that it is very exciting that they will be making a 3D map of the remains. All of my Grandparents were born after the sinking therefore I unfortunately never had anyone that I could ask about the events or even what was printed in papers at the time. I’m looking forward to the new developments everyday. I believe this is something that will continue to peak my interests till the day I am no longer on this earth.
I think they should The Titanic because is truly an amazing artifact rebuild the Titanic
I have just come across this site and its wonderful to hear of this project. I have seen the exibition in Belfast and was very tearful about it because it represented one of the most amazing stores of the 20 Century. I look forward to hearing out the project works out. For those people who had relatives on the Ship I am sure you are very eager to learn as much as you can about the fate of your relatives.
i think the movie was very sad at the time it actully made me cry alot and for the people who didnt make it is sad
so do i well i have a book report on it you people should read it its really good
Distant Waves: A Novel of the Titanic by Suzanne Weyn
lol but thats sad
no it not
The boat sank get over it!
Joe R
It’s sad, the film makes me sad for days. The Titanic is being esten by underwater sea creatures apparently, and only has 15 years left! Why don’t they take it out of the sea? Surely, if they took it piece by piece, they have the equipment to get it out and preserve it before it is gone? I don’t want it to rot away..
this is cool
love it
I would have liked to go on the Titanic but not the sinking part
xx
There should be another Titanic
sad sad movie
didnt cry tho
idk why
titanic is peace of shit
it is wonderful
and 
.
why do people go on about the films ? now they have made titanic 2 ??? i think they should stop trying to make more money out of it and leave the wreck alone. after all its a grave for the people who died on her. we all know the story .
Thank you. I have no idea why this entry has inspired so many fans of the film to post their one-note thoughts. The wreck and the film are two different things, folks. This entry is about the former.
yeah the movie its sad but cool in a way.
i love this move but it is such a sad movi
im sorry sir but do u just come onn this sit to bother other people and tell them what they should and should night say i say that even if u have studyed THE TITANIC…other then that all because you had a family member on the boat doesnt make you and expert on the Titanic or gives u the right to be mean to others on the site that just want to say what they think because this is a free country and people have the right to say what they want and you r no expert because there maybe still some hidden treasures of the Titanic not known yet.
I <3 the titanic i wish it did sunk they said it was unsunkable omg <3 titanic i wish i was one it not when i sunk i love the moive
by amielee
Your Comment is unbelievable… How can you say that the Titanic is such a thing! It is one of the most amazing pieces of artifacts that man could ever find! Hundreds of innocent people died on that ship and you have the nerve to call it that! You are the worst human being I have ever laid eyes on such a comment! I hope your selfishness comes you bite back at you in life because you have just made a complete ass out of yourself!
to be an expert on the titanic would take around 1 week to get it all. Its isnt that big of a story, Yes sad and shocking and i feel for those poor soles.
But to be quite honest its a simple toopic that would take buggar all to be an expert on
Puting a huge steel boat on the water and then saying its an “unsinkable” vessel
Defies all logic doesnt it.
I dont think any other propaganda commercial advertising has come unstauck so quickly and so tragically.
The have never used the words “unsinkable” on any vessel to date. Dont blame them either hay.
By the way the old Black and white movie was so much better and gave a great feel about how horrible it must have been. So many people her ein Australia cannot fathom how cold that water was. We whinge if the water is only 19 degree centregrade.. ou remeber how cool it was when they finally found it at the bottom of the sea. No one really beleived it but there she was.
OK, i will go away and leave you alone now
i LOVE ROSE IN TITANIC!!!
I FEEL BAD
omg the titanic is so cool who is an idiot not to belive that its like the king and the qween is the qween mary
yhe titanic rocks
NOT END OF THE STORY,
BY
TR,Selvakumar
god,by