Searching for the Titanic

It was April 14, 1912. The Titanic sped across the Atlantic Ocean. The sky glittered with stars; the sea was as still as glass.

This was the Titanic’s first voyage. But already it was world famous. It was big and beautiful. Many believed it was the safest ship ever built.

And then . . . disaster struck!

At 11:40 p.m., the Titanic hit a massive iceberg. The ship’s thick metal side tore open. Icy seawater flooded the ship. The Titanic was doomed. There weren’t enough lifeboats for everyone on board.  Out of more than 2,200 people, only 705 escaped.

Less than three hours later, the Titanic disappeared into the black waters of the North Atlantic.

Would it ever be seen again?

On April 14, 1912, a new ship called the Titanic sped across the Atlantic Ocean. The sea was as still as glass. The ship was big and beautiful. It was famous around the world.

And then . . . disaster struck!

The Titanic hit a big iceberg. It sank into the ocean. Would it ever be seen again?

It was April 14, 1912. The Titanic sped across the Atlantic Ocean. Stars were bright in the sky. The sea was as still as glass.

This was the Titanic’s first voyage. But it was already world famous. Many people thought it was the safest ship ever made.

And then . . . disaster struck!

Late at night, the Titanic hit a massive iceberg. The side of the ship ripped open. Icy seawater flooded in. There were more than 2,200 people on the ship. Only 705 escaped.

A couple hours later, the Titanic sank into the ocean. Would it ever be seen again?

On the night of April 14, 1912, the Titanic sped across the Atlantic Ocean. The sky glittered with stars, the sea was still as glass. On board were more than 2,200 people—bejeweled millionaires and hopeful immigrants, passengers from all around the world. 

This was Titanic’s first voyage. But already it was world famous. Built from the strongest steel, from the most modern designs, the Titanic was said to be “unsinkable.” Then disaster struck.

At 11:40 p.m. the Titanic collided with an iceberg. As icy seawater flooded the ship, it quickly became clear that the Titanic was not unsinkable. It was doomed. And so were most of those on board. 

Two hours and forty minutes later, the magnificent Titanic disappeared into the inky black waters of the North Atlantic.

Would it ever be seen again?

The news of the Titanic disaster shocked the world. Some hoped people had survived inside the wreck. They wanted the Titanic to be found!

But the Titanic was at the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean. It was under more than 2 miles of water. No person could survive in water so deep, even if they had air to breathe.

That’s because of something called water pressure, the force of water pushing against the body from all directions. The deeper you go under the sea, the more crushing the pressure becomes. Lungs can’t inflate. Blood doesn’t flow. The heart can barely squeeze out a beat. This is why humans had never explored the deep sea.

Nobody had been to the bottom of the ocean before. Humans can’t survive deep underwater. There’s too much water pressure. That’s the force of water pressing against the body. If humans go too deep, they will die. Lungs can’t inflate. The heart can’t beat.

Years passed. People came up with new ways to explore the ocean. But still no one found the Titanic.

In 1960, two scientists went inside a tiny submarine. It was called a “submersible.” They used it to explore the deep ocean. They inspired other scientists, like Robert Ballard. Ballard saw many things in the deep sea. He saw worms that were as big as humans. But he really wanted to find the Titanic. Ballard and his team tried to find it in 1977. But they had a problem. Part of their ship fell into the ocean. They had to return home.

People were upset. Some hoped that passengers in the ship were still alive. People wanted the Titanic to be searched. But first, the ship had to be found.

The Titanic was at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Nobody could go that deep underwater.

That’s because of something called water pressure. Water pressure is the force of water pressing against the body. The pressure gets worse as you go deeper into the ocean. Lungs can’t inflate. The heart can barely beat. This is why humans had never been to the deep sea.

News of the Titanic disaster shocked the world. Right away, people demanded that the ship be found. Some desperate families held out hope that their loved ones could still be alive, sealed off somewhere inside the wreck.

But the Titanic had come to rest on the bottom of the North Atlantic, more than 2 miles beneath the surface. Nobody could survive in such depths, even if there were air to breathe.

That’s because of water pressure—the force of water pushing against the body from all directions. As water gets deeper, pressure becomes more and more crushing. Lungs can’t inflate. Blood doesn’t flow. The heart can barely squeeze out a beat. Even strong metal submarines can be crushed like soda cans. 

In 1912, humans had never ventured into the deep sea. The Titanic was lost in a world as mysterious—and unreachable—as outer space.

Ballard wanted to try again. But he was embarrassed by his failure. It was hard to get more money for another trip. He tried not to get too upset. Instead, he focused on another dream he had.

For years, Ballard had wanted to create a better way for humans to explore the deep sea. Submersibles let scientists like Ballard go deep underwater. But the trips were dangerous. And the submersibles could stay down for only a few hours at a time.

Ballard had a new idea. He wanted to build a remote-controlled submersible. This one wouldn’t need a human to go inside. Also, it would be covered with cameras. It would take pictures and record videos that scientists could watch from a ship above.

Ballard and a team got to work on the submersible. It was called Argo. Meanwhile, Ballard hadn’t forgotten about the Titanic. In 1984, he decided to try again to find the shipwreck.

On August 24, 1985, Ballard and his team were back in the North Atlantic. This time they had Argo. They sent Argo down to the bottom of the ocean. Its cameras and video cameras clicked and buzzed. In a ship above, Ballard and his team watched as images came onto the screen. Argo worked perfectly!

In the coming days, Argo took pictures and videos of many things. There were boulders. There were huge holes in the sea bottom. There were plants that could grow without light. But there was no sign of the Titanic.

Ballard wanted to try again. But it was hard to get more money for another trip. He tried not to get upset. Instead, he thought about another dream he had.

He wanted to find a better way to explore the deep sea. Scientists could go deep underwater in a submersible. But the trips were dangerous. And submersibles couldn’t stay down for very long.

Ballard had a new idea: a remote-controlled submersible. No human needed to be inside. It had cameras to take pictures and record videos. Scientists could look at the pictures and videos while on a ship above.

Ballard and his team built the new submersible. They named it Argo. Ballard had not forgotten about the Titanic. He decided to look for it again.

On August 24, 1985, Ballard and his team went back to the Atlantic. This time they had Argo. They sent Argo down to the bottom of the ocean. Its cameras clicked and buzzed. From above, Ballard and his team watched images on the screen. Argo worked perfectly!

Argo took pictures and videos of many things. There were boulders. There were huge holes in the sea bottom. There were plants that could grow without light. But there was no sign of the Titanic.

What about the Titanic was so fascinating?

There was the ship, of course. At the time, the Titanic was the biggest moving object ever built. Few ships were as luxurious. But more than its powerful engines or beautiful first-class cabins, it was the heartbreaking tragedy of the sinking that captivated people like Ballard.

More than 1,500 people died in the sinking. And most of their deaths could have been prevented. The Titanic’s crew had been warned that icebergs were lurking in its path. Yet the Titanic’s captain kept the ship steaming across the ocean at close to top speed.

Even after the collision, almost everyone could have survived. But there were only enough lifeboats for half of those on board. 

In the years after the disaster, survivors shared their terrifying memories—the haunting cries they heard as the ship went down, their hours of frozen terror in the lifeboats, their tears of relief when, at dawn, the ship Carpathia came to rescue them.

Reading these poignant [POY-nyuhnt] stories, Ballard became more determined to find the ship. But where exactly was the Titanic? Nobody was sure.

Titanic’s crew had relayed its location after it hit the iceberg —about 400 miles south of Newfoundland. But the Titanic had most certainly drifted in the more than two hours before it finally sank.

Ballard scoured historical records. Finally he settled on a 100-square-mile area of ocean to search. 

In 1977, he and a team set out for the North Atlantic. Hopes were high. But then, just days into the voyage, a 50-ton piece of his ship came loose and crashed down. Six hundred thousand dollars worth of sonar and other borrowed equipment plunged into the sea. Devastated, Ballard returned home.

On September 1, Ballard went to his cabin to try to rest. He felt discouraged. Soon they’d run out of time and have to go back to shore. Was this mission going to end like the first, in failure?

He had just settled into bed when he was called back upstairs. The team was studying something in the control room. On the screen was a huge metal object. Ballard’s heart pounded. He knew what he was looking at: part of the Titanic’s engine! Soon they saw more—a piece of twisted metal, round windows for a ship, a bannister. They had done it!

In the coming days, Ballard and the team would make dazzling discoveries. The biggest discovery: The ship had cracked in half just before it sank. The front part was one-third of a mile away from the back. Debris was scattered for more than a mile. They’d find dishes, shoes, and jewels on the seafloor.

But Ballard didn’t take any of those treasures. He explored the shipwreck of the Titanic but left it untouched. He wanted to always honor the memory of those who had lost their lives on that starlit night in 1912.  

Then on September 1, one of Argo’s cameras found a huge metal object. Ballard’s heart pounded. He knew what he was looking at. It was part of the Titanic’s engine! Then they saw a piece of twisted metal, round windows, and a bannister. They had done it!

Ballard and his team made many discoveries. They learned that the ship had cracked in half just before it sank. The front part was far away from the back. Debris was spread out for more than a mile. They found dishes, shoes, and jewels on the seafloor.

But Ballard didn’t take any of those treasures. He wanted to always honor the memory of those who had lost their lives on that night in 1912.  

Ballard’s failure made it hard for him to get support for another search. And soon he had a rival: a millionaire named Jack Grimm.

Grimm loved spending his money on attention-grabbing quests. Over the years, he’d searched, without success, for Big Foot and the Loch Ness monster. In 1980, he set his sights on the Titanic.

Grimm hired top scientists and bought them the best equipment. Ballard felt certain the team would succeed. He tried to let go of his Titanic dreams. Fortunately, Ballard had other dreams to focus on.

For years, Ballard had wanted to create a better way to explore the deep sea. Submersibles had let scientists like Ballard glimpse the undersea world. But those journeys were perilous. Plus, the submersibles could stay down only for a few hours at a time.

Ballard had an idea for a new kind of remote-controlled submersible, one he called Argo. It was basically an underwater robot covered with cameras. Like an octopus with cameras and lights clutched in every tentacle, Argo would capture thousands of images over large areas. Scientists on the surface would be able to see the images on TV screens.

With money provided by the U.S. Navy, Ballard and a team got to work on Argo. Meanwhile, Grimm’s Titanic search went on and on, without success. Finally, after three separate missions costing millions of dollars, Grimm ended his Titanic quest.

By 1984, Ballard was ready to try again.

This time would be different, though, because Ballard could use Argo.

The new video submersible worked just as Ballard had imagined it would. In one of its first tests, Ballard used Argo on a secret U.S. Navy mission to explore two sunken submarines. Both subs had disappeared in the Atlantic in the 1960s.

Using Argo, Ballard quickly found the subs. And those searches taught him an important lesson. The submarines had broken up as they were sinking. Debris was scattered for more than a mile. Argo—and Ballard—spotted the debris first, and that’s what led Ballard to the submarine wrecks.

Surely the Titanic had also broken apart as it sank, Ballard realized. Its metal would have been crushed by water pressure. Furniture and china and other objects would have spilled out and been carried by ocean currents. Like a trail of breadcrumbs, Titanic’s debris could lead right to the main part of the wreck.

Or so Ballard hoped.

On August 24, 1985, Ballard and his team were back in the North Atlantic. They directed Argo to the area near where the Titanic most likely sank. Argo’s images started to flash onto TV screens. Just as Ballard had envisioned, Argo provided a window into the deep sea.

In the coming days, Argo would reveal deep undersea canyons, giant boulders, and enormous holes in the ocean floor. But mostly the team saw. . . nothing.

The days ticked by, and there was no sign of the Titanic, not a glint of metal. Ballard started to panic. The U.S. Navy was paying for this mission and had provided the ship and equipment. It had given Ballard a strict deadline, then he and his team would have to head home.

Was this mission going to end in failure?

On September 1, Ballard went to his cabin to catch a precious few hours of rest. He was exhausted and deeply discouraged.

But then Ballard was called back to the deck. He hurried to the control room and found the team studying an image on one of the TV screens. It was a huge metal object covered in rust.

Ballard’s heart pounded as he realized what he was looking at: one of the Titanic’s boilers, a part of its engines. Soon came other images—a piece of twisted metal, portholes, a banister. Cheers erupted. They had done it!

In the coming days, they’d make more dazzling discoveries. They’d find that the ship had cracked in half just before it sank. The front part was a third of a mile away from the back. They’d see jewels and dishes and shoes scattered across the seafloor. Ballard would become world famous.

But in those first moments of discovery, a chill ran through Ballard’s heart. He thought of those people who had been on board. His mind filled with their voices, their cries.

He hadn’t just found an empty shipwreck. He’d found the final resting place of a magnificent ship of dreams—of the hundreds who lost their lives on that starlit night in 1912.