Pelagic Research Services’ ROV image of the Titan’s tail cone. Image: US Coast Guard
The first image of the wreckage of the Titan submersible has been released to the public.
The haunting photo comes a little over a year after the OceanGate disaster that killed everyone aboard. The victims were explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, adventurer Hamish Hardin, father and son Shahzada and Suleiman Dawood and Stockton Rush, who co-founded OceanGate. The remains of the Titan were found at more than 12,000 feet down on the floor of the North Atlantic.
The Titan was trying to take tourists down to the wreckage of the Titanic on June 18, 2023, when it catastrophically failed. Although the implosion was confirmed within days of the accident, the image is the first one released to the public. It was presented by U.S. Coast Guard officials on Sept. 16 as a part of a hearing into what happened on that fateful day.
The photo was taken by a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) owned by Pelagic Research Services.
“Over a six-day period, the PRS Odysseus 6K ROV successfully completed six recovery dives and utilized its heavy-lift capability along with extensive manipulator work loading recovery baskets,” wrote Pelagic Research Services in a press release. “All debris brought to the surface in this initial phase was recovered by PRS.”
The ROV found the aft tail cone and other, smaller parts of the Titan sub four days after the implosion. The Titan Submersible Marine Board of Investigation also released an animation of of the Titan’s final dive.
A representative from the Coast Guard Office of Investigations and Analysis told reporters that they hope the hearing can “help shed light on the cause of the tragedy and prevent anything like this from happening again.”
That sentiment was echoed by OceanGate’s attorney, Jane Shvets. “[OceanGate] offers our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones, among them those here today, of those who died on June 18, 2023,” she said. “There are no words to ease the loss endured by the families impacted by this tragic incident, but we hope that this hearing will help shed light on the cause of the tragedy and prevent anything like this from happening again.”
