The 21-foot submersible watercraft Titan, owned by OceanGate Expeditions, imploded near the site of the Titanic shipwreck on Sunday, killing all five people on board long before the Coast Guard launched a search and rescue mission.
The submersible was carrying Stockton Rush, the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, British adventurer Hamish Harding, and Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
The Coast Guard announced on Thursday that debris from the Titan had been found roughly 1,600 feet from the Titanic in North Atlantic waters. This confirmed that the submersible had imploded and that all five people on board had been killed.
Shortly after the Titan submersible lost communication with the surface and was reported missing Sunday, the U.S. Navy, using classified technology, detected sounds the military “suspected” were caused by the implosion of the vessel.
The cause of the implosion is still under investigation, but the Coast Guard has said that it is likely that the submersible suffered a catastrophic failure of its pressure hull. This could have been caused by a number of factors, including a structural defect, a sudden change in pressure, or a collision with an object.
The cost of the Coast Guard’s search and rescue mission for the Titan submersible is still being determined, but it is estimated to be in the millions of dollars.
The Coast Guard deployed a number of resources to the search, including ships, aircraft, and underwater robots. The mission was hampered by the harsh conditions in the North Atlantic, including strong currents and low visibility.
Chris Boyer, the executive director of the National Association for Search and Rescue, said that the cost of a search and rescue mission can vary depending on a number of factors, including the size of the area being searched, the number of resources deployed, and the length of time the search takes.
Boyer said that the cost of the Coast Guard’s search for the Titan submersible is likely to be “significant.”
The implosion of the Titan is a tragic loss for the families and friends of the five people who were killed. It is also a reminder of the dangers of deep-sea exploration. Even the most advanced technology can fail, and accidents can happen.
The harrowing incident occurred after Titan took a five-person crew on a dive to explore the wreckage site of the Titanic on Sunday, but quickly went missing.
The crew included an operator and four “mission specialists” — a term used by OceanGate Expeditions for its passengers, who each paid $250,000 per seat for the experience.
The tourist sub lost contact with the Polar Prince research ship an hour and 45 minutes after submerging in an area approximately 900 miles east of Cape Cod, in the North Atlantic, where the ocean reaches a depth of around 13,000 feet.
The Coast Guard launched a search and rescue mission, which was hampered by the potential depth of the Titan and the conditions surrounding the dive.
Mauger told reporters on Monday that the submersible had emergency oxygen and a 96-hour sustainment capability in the case of an emergency on board, but the implosion happened long before the Titan would have run out of oxygen on Thursday.
The Coast Guard has said that it will continue to search for more information about what happened to the Titan. However, it is likely that the full story will never be known.
In the meantime, the families and friends of the five people who were killed are left to grieve their loss. They are also left to wonder what might have been if the submersible had not imploded.
This is a tragic story, but it is also a story of courage and adventure. The five people who were killed were all explorers who were driven by a passion for the ocean. They will be remembered for their bravery and their dedication to their work.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of the five people who were killed in the implosion of the Titan. We also send our condolences to the team at OceanGate Expeditions. This is a difficult time for everyone involved, and we wish them all the best.