What is known about the disappearance of the submarine Titan?

Time is running out against the five crew members of the submarine Titan. Huge The search device is trying to find OceanGate’s tiny submarine who disappeared 700 kilometers from Newfoundland. The expedition had a tourist purpose. His goal was to see up close remains of the titanic on the seabed.

This Wednesday, the United States Coast Guard reported that the craft had been discovered underwater noises in the search area but, so far, the search has not borne fruit.

What is Titan?

The Titan is a twenty-foot long submarine developed by a specialized underwater research company called Ocean Gate. It is mainly used in scientific research, but as of 2021, batisfafo is used for tourist trips. Titan in a submarine with a capacity of five people. It is equipped with 4K video cameras that capture all the details of the seabed in high quality.

The 10.5-ton ship belongs to the Cyclops class and can reach a depth of 4,000 meters at a maximum speed of 3 knots, or 5.5 kilometers per hour. OceanGate boasts a high mobility, better than any other deep dive vessel. The company also highlights its own security levels (because he constantly evaluates the condition of his helmet) and the quality of the material, “the most innovative”.

The interior space has been reduced and adapted for the pilot and four passengers. It has a deep view thanks to the large front skylight. It also has three screens, a small bathroom, and a video game console-like controller to control it. To this should be added acoustic sensors, pressure gauges and a system that gives an early warning to the pilot in case he has to return to the surface immediately.

How was the trip?

The purpose of the trip was through see the remains of the Titanic up close on the seabed. The crew each paid for the expedition 250 thousand dollars (€228,000) and departed on Friday, June 16, from San Juan de Terranova, which is about 400 miles from the historic wreck. By this time the passengers had arrived on the research ship The polar prince. Once in the right place, the Titan is placed on a floating platform above the ocean. The platform tanks are filled with water to submerge the ship ten meters. After separating from the platform, the submarine sinks thanks to some ballasts, weights that are released when returning to the surface.

Although the weather was not good at the crossing, the conditions improved for the agreed day. The submarine dived at 18:00 on Sunday and communication was lost shortly after. They were about 2,000 meters down when they separated from the mother ship. To facilitate contact between both vessels, OceanGate contracted Elon Musk’s Starlink system, which enabled the internet and necessary communications on board. The wreck of the Titanic was the goal. The wreck is 3,900 meters deep and is 600 kilometers from the coast of Newfoundland.

What is the search device?

The alarms went off when the submarine was lost barely two hours after sinking. Communication systems and location systems were not working. Almost two hours after the tip-off, a search using a remote-controlled vehicle began for the submarine’s last known location. US Navy ships, which coordinate the operation, and private ships joined the search. They carry cameras and sonars on board. One of the main problems is that very few countries have rescue technology of this kindi.e. submarines. To compensate for this shortcoming, Deep Energy, a pipe-laying vessel, cooperates in tasks with an undersea exploration robot. France will work with the Atalante, a ship that has a similar underwater device.

The Polar Prince himself, who took the Titan to the submersion point, is still in the area, and OceanGate is trying to move its own submarine to an area that can reach a depth of 6,000 meters.

Where are they looking for you?

Those responsible for the device said they were trying to locate the ship 400 miles from Newfoundland and in an area of ​​20,000 square kilometers, both on the surface and under the ocean.

How much air is left inside?

This is the main reason that turns the search into an agonizing mission. The first estimate is that they are 96 hours of breathing air inside. Namely, the rescue limit is this Thursday at noon Spanish time.

Another circumstance is added to the meager reserve of air, the cold that registers in those depths of the ocean. In addition, the ship is very small, which makes it difficult to track it, and if it is located, experts doubt that they will be able to retrieve it in time due to its heavy weight, more than 10 tons.

Where could it be found?

all experts hope that the submarine is on the surface or near it, but no one dares to say where it can be found. Alistair Greig, a professor at University College London and an expert on submarines, assures that location is key. What is clear is that it is unlikely to be in the middle. It is either on the surface or on the bottom. Another possibility is that the hull is damaged and there is a leak. Therefore, the prognosis is not good, the expert explained in an interview with the BBC.

Who travels inside the submarine?

They go to Titan five people. Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and her son Suleman, as well as British explorer Hamish Harding travel on a tourist submarine. Dawood lives with his family in the United Kingdom and sponsors the SETI Institute, whose mission is to explore and understand the origins of the universe, while Harding is the chairman of Action Aviation and is known for his space travel. The other two individuals are French researcher Paul-Henry Nargeolet and OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush.

Is this the first time to work on this expedition?

It’s not the first time it’s been done. a luxurious trip lasting eight days and seven nights. Each group is accompanied by a pilot and an expert on the mythical Titanic shipwreck. This expedition has already been carried out in 2021 and 2022. Just last year, journalist David Pogue traveled on the ship and told about the experience in a special CBS program. He is one of the witnesses who assure that Titan he was gone for more than two hours. On the second try, he completed the mission. The voices of experts keep multiplying that the diver was not safe.