OceanGate’s Titan Submarine. Photo by : Ocean Gate
Search and rescue teams are working around the clock to locate the tourist submersible, with five people on board, which disappeared from radar shortly after beginning an expedition to the wreckage of the Titanic, which lies 15,000 feet (3,800 meters) at the bottom of the Atlantic, about 1,200 miles from the coast of Newfoundland (Canada).
The submarine, dubbed Titan, lost contact with its mother ship Polar Prince last Sunday about an hour and 45 minutes after the start of the dive, according to the United States Coast Guard (USCG), which along with their Canadian counterparts He is combing the area with help of aircraft equipped with underwater detection sensors.
Next, we review everything that is known about Titan and what scenarios could explain its disappearance, as well as the possibilities of rescue.
Who is on board?
OceanGate Expeditions, the operator of the missing vessel, said they would “mobilize all options” to “return the crew safely”. Although he did not give details of who is on the submersible, it has been revealed to the media that among them are British billionaire Hamish Harding, as well as Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, vice president of Engro Fertilizers, the second largest fertilizer producer in Pakistan, and his son Suleman.
French dive pilot Paul-Henry Nargeolet and OceanGate CEO and founder Stockton Rush would complete the expedition, Sky News reports.
What is the submarine and what is it for?
The submarine in question is capable of transporting up to 5 people at depths of up to 4,000 meters for tourism, research, film production purposes, and high-sea hardware and software testing, as stated on the operator’s website.
To be able to work at this depth, the carbon fiber and titanium Titan has four electric motors that allow it to plow through the water at a speed of 3 knots (about 5.5 kilometers per hour). The ship, which has an oxygen reserve of 96 hours for five people, is also equipped with several cameras, radars and lights, among other things.
For communications, Titan uses Starlink satellite technology, owned by billionaire Elon Musk. “With no cell towers in the middle of the ocean, we’re relying on Starlink to provide us with the communications we need during this year’s 2023 Titanic Expedition,” OceanGate announced in a June 14 tweet.
Unlike conventional submarines, which can spend months underwater, a submarine of this type requires a mother ship for launch and recovery once the mission is complete.
What could go wrong?
Currently, there is little information about what exactly might have caused the submarine’s disappearance, why contact with it was lost, and how close it was to the Titanic. However, experts are already considering several hypotheses.
According to one of them, the Titan could have become entangled in the wreckage of the Titanic. “There are parts everywhere. It’s dangerous,” said former Australian naval officer Frank Owen, quoted by The Guardian.
Another version indicates a failure of the propulsion system or problems with the communication system. In the event of a tangle or a power or communications failure, the submersible could use drop weights that could detach and generate enough buoyancy to bring it to the surface.
Another scenario is a possible leak in the pressure hull, which would complicate rescue, according to Alistair Greig, professor of marine engineering at University College London. “If you’ve fallen to the bottom of the sea and can’t get back up on your own, your options are very limited. Although the submersible can remain intact when it is beyond the continental shelf, there are very few vessels that can reach such a depth,” the expert points out.
obstacles to rescue
In its statement, OceanGate thanked the support of “various government agencies and deep sea companies” for their attempts to re-establish contact with the submersible.
However, depth is the main factor hampering rescue efforts. From the UK Ministry of Defense, they have already warned that the water depth in the region of the disappearance “far exceeds the depth at which NATO’s submarine rescue system can safely operate,” reports Sky News.
Meanwhile, the US government is blocking approval of a request for assistance from British specialist contractor Magellan Limited, which claims it has the equipment and experience to rescue the missing submersible, The Telegraph reports.
The company, which last year performed the first life-size digital scan of Titanic after collecting 700,000 images of its remains, has an unmanned device that could reach depths of up to 5,000 meters and remove OceanGate’s submersible.
The US Navy now has special submersibles for rescue operations, but according to the Submarine Rescue Command, they can only operate at depths of up to 2,000 feet (about 609 meters).
For his part, Eric Fusil, a professor at the University of Adelaide (Australia), pointed out that the search options are very limited. “Since there is no mooring between the Titan and the supporting surface vehicle, the only way to communicate or detect them from the surface is through the seawater,” he told CNN in a comment. Rifle emphasized that in this case the Titan could only use acoustic sensors and basic communications such as text messages.
(Taken from RT in Spanish)