More than 100 years since the Titanic sank, and a quarter of a decade since Leo and Kate were immortalized on their ill-fated journey in film, the ship has held a sizable place in the popular imagination. So it’s strange to think of it as a real ship, slowly decaying 12,000 feet below the surface of the Atlantic, 400 nautical miles off the coast of Canada.
The wreck of the Titanic is slowly decomposing 3,800 meters deep at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Titanic is still with us, or at least with whatever lies in the abyss. And if curiosity piques you to visit it, you will have to spend 250,000 euros (more than 5.8 billion VND) for this trip. A rather large number that not everyone dares to spend, so until now the whole world has only witnessed the Titanic and the surrounding debris since the wreck was discovered.
OceanGate, a US-based service company, has just announced a tour to see the Titanic wreck off the coast of Canada. The tour price for each participant is 250,000 euros, departing in May 2023 with an 8-day journey. During this time, visitors will be served seafood dishes by a 5-star chef and enjoy high-class champagne. In addition, the company is currently recruiting divers to serve this expedition.
Titanic wreck seen from the window of the exploration ship
The fee includes training and exploration support for tourists participating in the tour. The company said that since the wreck was discovered in 1985, less than 250 people have seen the Titanic "in the flesh". Tour participants are not just tourists, but also "explorers". Guests must be 18 years old, in good health to be able to climb, carry heavy objects and access the wreck by sitting in a specialized submersible. OceanGate also worked with NASA to design this submersible, which can carry 5 crew members on board.
This special tour uses a specialized deep-diving vessel that can carry 5 people. The journey lasts 8 days, not only a pure tour but also has a mission to explore and research the Titanic and the ecosystem in this area.
“The incredible detail in the 8k footage will help our team of scientists and maritime archaeologists more accurately depict the Titanic’s decomposition as we capture new footage in 2023 and beyond,” said Stockton Rush, president of OceanGate Expeditions.
“I have been studying the wreck for decades, completed many dives, and I cannot recall seeing any other images that show this level of detail. It is exciting that after so many years, we may have discovered a new detail that was not apparent to previous generations of camera technology,” commented veteran Titanic diver Rory Golden.
The expeditions are part of a “multi-year longitudinal study of the Titanic and its unique, biodiverse ecosystem,” OceanGate added.
While Titanic is certainly the company's flagship expedition, it also offers deep dives in the Great Bahama Bank and the mysterious Hudson Canyon – dubbed the underwater Grand Canyon.
OceanGate also worked with NASA to design this submersible, which can carry five people at a time.
During a recent dive to the Titanic wreck, explorers discovered many interesting details, such as the name of the anchor manufacturer (Noah Hingley & Sons Ltd) or the first boilers that fell into the sea when the Titanic broke in two. In addition to providing sharper data on many details such as the bow, hull, collapsed railings... the videos recorded by the team helped identify the species living on and around the Titanic.
In addition to the Titanic wreck exploration, OceanGate also offers deep dives in other mysterious sea areas such as the Great Bahama Bank or Hudson Canyon - the place known as the "Grand Canyon" under the ocean.
