The famous ocean liner Titanic, which lies at a depth of over 3800 meters, was recently visited during a new exploration. And the observations are not good. The high salinity of the shallows, coupled with the proliferation of natural micro-organisms, is leading to the accelerated disintegration of the ship.
As proof of this, the left side of the bow rail has collapsed, somewhat disfiguring the liner as we knew it.
It was undoubtedly the most famous part of the liner. Since James Cameron’s film in the 1990s, the Titanic’s bow railing had become a veritable symbol.
It was on this very spot that Jack and Rose kissed for the first time… And although this romance was fictional, it left enough of an imprint on our imaginations to make us think of it, even when we saw photos of the real wreck.
Unfortunately, recent exploration of the wreck by RMS Titanic Inc. (who still own the ship), shows that this part has partially collapsed (whereas it was still intact 2 years ago).
The new images from #TITANICExpedition2024 reveal one thing for sure: #TITANIC is changing.
After 112 years at the bottom of the #NorthAtlantic, the hostile ocean environment has taken a toll on TITANIC. pic.twitter.com/y8DKTj8Qi7— RMS Titanic, Inc. (@RMSTitanic_Inc) September 1, 2024
All that remains is the right-hand side of the rail… but this too seems to be weakening.
This is due to a natural ecosystem that is increasingly corrosive to the wreck.
The salt, coupled with the proliferation of micro-organisms, is gradually “nibbling” away at the metals and everything else that makes up the boat.
Despite this bad news, the exploration nevertheless yielded some major discoveries, including that of a bronze statue known as “Diane de Versailles”.
Extremely well preserved, this statue once took pride of place in the first-class lounge. However, it had been declared missing many years ago…
So this is a very welcome discovery!
As a reminder, these regular explorations, commissioned by RMD Titanic Inc, are intended to take the regular pulse of the wreck, its state of deterioration and to make any further discoveries.
As she disintegrates, the Titanic’s secrets can be unlocked, allowing us to penetrate to the very heart of her structure.
The mission was to document the debris field as accurately as possible, better understand what’s down there, learn more about the state of decomposition and identify what’s most at risk, which could help us tell the Titanic story a little better,” said Tomasina Ray, Director of Collections at RMS Titanic Inc.
So far, the mission has proved a success.
The data collected will be used to get a more precise idea of the liner’s condition, and to multiply educational approaches to better tell the ship’s story. We look forward to seeing you in 2 years’ time, when the face of the Titanic may have changed yet again…
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