What do you think? Was the Titanic found?Was The Titanic Found? When Was The Titanic Found?
The Titanic Wreckage
If we wanted to keep things simple and answer the questions of was the titanic found and when was the titanic found, it would be a simple yes and 1985.
The simple answer isn’t any fun however. I’m a huge Titanic nerd and love discussing and studying the subject of the Titanic. As a matter of fact, I have a huge Titanic Facts For Kids page, check it out! Believe it or not many people still wonder “Was The Titanic Found?”. Many people see the movie or hear about the Titanic but often wonder if the ship ever actually existed.
A more common question is “When Was The Titanic Found?”. This is obviously much more of uncommon knowledge but something I still love talking about. Were going to dive into the Titanic and talk about whether the Titanic was found and when the Titanic was found. Maybe I shouldn’t use the word dive?
Was The Titanic Found?
Okay, this question is very easily answered. So… Yes. The Titanic was found. I have read a few conspiracy theories out there stating that the Titanic that was found is not real, it’s all very moon landing. I choose to believe that the Titanic was found and we are very sure of where it is.
When Was The Titanic Found?
Who Found The Titanic?
Lets talk abut when the Titanic was found then we will touch on how was the Titanic was found. September 1, 1985 deep in the ocean Dr. Robert Ballard was having problems sleeping. The 43 year old oceanographer was enjoying a book when someone knocked on the door of the research vessel he was aboard.
Who found the Titanic? Dr. Robert Ballard and his crew did.
The doctor was trying to answer our question of was the Titanic Found, he only had a few days left in his mission. He was beginning to worry that they would never find the Titanic and he was chasing a dream.
Then the knock, he ran to the ships control his colleagues showed some grainy hard to see footage of what they had just witnessed. There it was, in all it’s glory, the unmistakable metal that showed from one of the The Titanic’s boilers.
It’s about to get crazy however.. The mood faded a bit when someone pointed out that the time they had found the missing Titanic was 2:20 AM which is the time on record that the Titanic sunk. It claimed over 1,500 passengers and crew and although the team was happy to find the ship, the weight of what they were looking at quickly sunk in.
It felt like a wild goose chase. The Titanic had drifted after it’s last reported location. It sent searchers in an area that spanned 100’s of miles and felt hopeless at times. This wasn’t Ballards first trip to find the legendary Titanic. This was actually his second, his first trip in 1977 he came back empty handed.
Was The Titanic Found?
US Military To The Rescue
How was the the Titanic found? It’s a very interesting story. Ballard struck a deal with the military that allowed him to go out in search of the Titanic again. The US Nave asked Ballard in the early 1980s to use his deep sea robots to photograph two nuclear submarines that had sunk the USS Thresher and Scorpion.
Eventually they came to an agreement so the US Navy could get photos of the subs and Ballard could search for The Titanic again. The deal was that he could search for the Titanic after he finished the job of photographing the nuclear subs, whatever time he had left in the mission could be devoted to searching for The Titanic.
To his demise, he only had 12 days left after finishing the other half of his agreement. He had some hope however after developing a new technique for searching when trying to find the nuclear subs the US Navy needed him to document.
How Was The Titanic Found?
A New Technique
He realized that a much more efficient way of finding the actual ship itself is looking for it’s trail of debris. He realized this when photographing the Thresher and Scorpion.
He then dragged Argo (the robot) through the ocean searching for a debris trail rather than a lawn mower approach with the robot. It took 7 people to keep the little deep sea robot going and monitor the live feed with it’s on board cameras.
The original discovery of the Titanic’s boiler was part of the debris trail the crew was searching for. Argo continued to follow the trail until they were able to uncover the Titanic’s bow from the dark depths.
Was The Titanic Found?
VICTORY!
It was mixed emotions from Ballard and his crew. On one hand you have found something you have spent years of your life dedicated to, on the other hand you were looking at one of the more tragically document events. For a moment you let your mind wander and think about how those who were aboard the ship must have felt as the icy cold water was rushing in around them. Or hanging on debris hoping for a rescue.
It was a very eerie and haunting site. The unmanned robot took more photos revealing large sections of the Titanic’s hull and mast. They were also able to locate where the iceberg had hit. The photos revealed a missing skylight that gave a look where 
the ships Grand Staircase had once been.
The debris trail was fascinating and included pieces of furniture, unopened cases of champagne and untouched fully intact china plates. The only indication of people was the leather boots still laying on the oceans sandy floor.
Ballard was the first, but many scientists have since visited the sight and documented the Titanic. Ballard would later fight for leaving all artifacts from the Titanic on the ocean floor, he advised it needed to be treated with reverence.
The beautiful quote from Ballard below.
“The Titanic lies now in 13,000 feet of water on a gently sloping alpine-like countryside overlooking a small canyon below,” he said. “There is no light at this great depth and little life can be found. It is a quiet and peaceful place—and a fitting place for the remains of this greatest of sea tragedies to rest. Forever may it remain that way.”
When was the Titanic found? It was found September 1st in 1985, by Dr. Robert Ballard under 13,000 feet of water at 2:20 in the morning.
Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope that you check out some of our other amazing articles including a huge Titanic Facts For Kids page. We have some really cool facts to check out! Feel free to look around!
Was The Titanic Found Youtube Video
What do you think? Was the Titanic found?
