Note: The Travel Awaits team regularly updates content to provide the latest, and most accurate information to our readers. The updated content in this article may not reflect the views or opinions of the original author.
Videos by TravelAwaits
The story of the RMS Titanic which sank on its maiden voyage in the North Atlantic Ocean has been the subject of movies, books, and public fascination for more than 100 years. Latest story-telling contribution? The Digital Twin -the Titanic shipwreck 3D scan made by Magellan! The largest underwater scanning project has turned into a huge success.
The ship, famously considered to be “unsinkable,” struck an iceberg and sank on April 15, 1912, while crossing the Atlantic. More than 1,500 people perished during the disaster.
There is a limit to what scientists and historians know about the disaster because the famous shipwreck lies on the seafloor of the North Atlantic Ocean at a depth of 12,500 feet, some 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland.
Now, however, scientists and historians are learning a lot more about the famous ship and its sinking.
A full-size digital scan of the Titanic has created its “digital twin,” which provides a 3D view of the shipwreck. Those views come thanks to an ambitious undertaking by deep-sea mapping company Magellan Ltd and Atlantic Productions, which is producing a documentary about the project.
“I have been studying the Titanic for 20 years, but this is a true game changer,” said Parks Stephenson, a Titanic explorer and researcher, according to the Washington Post.
“What we are seeing for the first time is an accurate and true depiction of the entire wreck and debris site,” Stephenson continued. “I’m seeing details that none of us have ever seen before.”
How The Digital Twin – Titanic Shipwreck 3D Scan -Was Created
The basis for the full-size digital scan of the Titanic wreck was completed during a 6-week expedition last summer, using deep-sea mapping technology developed by Magellan Ltd. This is considered to be the largest underwater scanning project in the history of deep sea mapping.
A specialist ship was positioned 430 miles off the Canadian coast. The researchers then used two submersibles named “Romeo” and “Juliet” to take more than 700,000 images and a high-resolution video from every angle of the shipwreck and debris field over about 200 hours, according to BBC News.
As a result, the researchers were able to map “every millimeter of the wreckage as well as the entire 3-mile debris field,” according to Atlantic Productions.
“The volume of data that we acquired was enormous,” said Richard Parkinson, Magellan’s chief executive, the Washington Post reports. “The results were astonishing.”
Importantly, since the Titanic wreckage became a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) protected heritage site in 2012, the researchers were careful not to disturb it.
“In accordance with tight regulations in place, the wreck was not touched or disturbed,” Atlantic Productions explains. “The entire site was treated with the utmost of respect, which included a flower laying ceremony in memory of those who lost their lives.”
Learning From The Past
The 3D scan captures the entire shipwreck and surrounding debris field in an amazing level of detail. That includes the Titanic’s bow and stern, which are separated by a distance of about 2,600 feet, and the enormous debris field.
In addition to the sheer scope of the wreckage, the scan also shows numerous details, including the serial number on one of the ship’s propellers, BBC News notes. Another detail is a “gaping” hole that offers a view into the space where the Titanic’s grand staircase once stood.
The scan also shows ornate metalwork from the ship, statues, and unopened champagne bottles in the surrounding debris field. Furthermore, personal possessions, including dozens of pairs of shoes, can be seen resting on the seafloor.
To this day, “There are still questions, basic questions, that need to be answered about the ship,” Stephenson told BBC News. The 3D scan, however, is “one of the first major steps to driving the Titanic story toward evidence-based research — and not speculation.”
While the scans of the Titanic will help researchers better understand the ship’s condition so they can document decay, they also help to tell the “story of the human loss,” said Helen Farr, maritime archaeologist at the University of Southampton, according to the Washington Post.
“Living in Southampton, the port city from which RMS Titanic set sail in 1912, I know that these losses have not been forgotten,” Farr said. “More than 720 of the 900 crew were from the city. A generation was lost in this disaster.”
Preserving the Titanic Wreck Is Mission Impossible
It would be a real feast to save what’s left of the Titanic, but the scientists claim that it’s a piper’s dream. It is just “impossible.” The bacteria found eating away at the Titanic is continuing to slowly consume the ship, and researchers now give the shipwreck just twenty more years until there is nothing left but a rust stain on the ocean floor.
Raising the Titanic wreckage would also be futile. After resting on the North Atlantic Ocean floor for a century, the Titanic is in such a deteriorated state that it couldn’t endure such an endeavor for multiple reasons. Nonetheless, some argue that the gradual decomposition of the vessel lost on its maiden voyage makes it more vital to at least salvage all these interesting objects associated with the Titanic.
On the other hand, naysayers argue that any further reclamation attempts are little more than cash grabs. The Titanic should be treated like a gravesite and the 1,500 souls should remain undisturbed.
After Ocean’s Gate submarine, a vessel designed to carry 5 people to the Titanic wreckage went missing on June 18th, 2023, concerns have been raised justly about the safety and costs of such expeditions.
And if you want to see Titanic in person, you can now buy a ticket and descend to the wreck site in a submersible, and explore the remains of the most famous ship in modern history.
FAQs
Can I Access the Full Titanic Wreck 3D Scans?
No. Atlantic Productions has yet to provide the full Titanic scans to the general public. In case you are interested in accessing the Titanic 3D scan data, check with Atlantic Productions directly or visit their official website for any updates regarding the availability of the data.
Why Is Magellan’s Titanic Wreck 3D Scan Better Than Previous Images Of the Titanic?
Because previous images of the Titanic were often limited by low light levels and only allowed viewers to see one area of the wreck at a time. The new photorealistic 3D model captures both the bow and stern sections in clear detail.
When Will the Documentary About the Titanic’s 3D Scanning Project Come Out?
It is set to come out next year, though Atlantic Productions, the company behind the impressive project, hasn’t revealed further information about the documentary or the exact date of its release yet.
Did the Magellan Expedition Go Inside the Titanic Wreck?
No. The expedition didn’t go inside the ship, let alone touch the site, following existing regulations. However, they paid their respects to the more than 1,500 victims with a flower-laying ceremony.
What Does the Titanic Shipwreck Look Like Now?
Being covered in rusticles and bacterial specimens eating away at her slowly, the Titanic wreckage is no longer recognizable. Scientists claim that the Titanic is expected to vanish entirely from the ocean floor within the next couple of decades. There is no way to preserve or slow the Titanic’s deterioration.
