In the years since the Titanic fell after colliding with an iceberg in 1912, we have grown accustomed to eerie photos of the fatal passenger liner’s bow lying at the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean. New images shot this summer reveal that the view has changed drastically.
The most recent mission by RMS Titanic Inc., an American corporation with salvage rights to the wreck, discovered that a part of the formerly unbroken railing surrounding the front of the ship’s top deck had fallen off. The 15-foot-long portion is currently on the sea floor, exactly below where it originally was.
New Titanic Photos Show Major Decay To Legendary Wreck
“We are saddened by this loss and the inevitable decay of the ship and its debris,” the business said on its website.
“Over the course of the next few weeks and months, we will conduct a more thorough review of Titanic’s condition and her changes over time,” she said.
“Although Titanic’s collapse is inevitable, this evidence strengthens our mission to preserve and document what we can before it is too late,” the statement read.
According to the company, the July expedition was the ninth since it first visited the wreck in 1987. Ocean imaging experts, oceanographers, scientists, and historians collaborated to capture new images of the wreck to review its condition, identify artifacts and areas at risk, and contribute to ongoing conservation efforts.
Over two million photographs were taken, and the crew looked for several relics.
This inquiry led to an exciting discovery.
On the last day of the journey, the team discovered and photographed a two-foot-tall bronze statue of Diana, the Roman goddess of nature and hunting.
According to the business, the statue, which previously sat on the fireplace mantle as a showpiece in the Titanic’s First Class lounge, was wrenched away and flung into the wreck’s debris field when the lounge tore open as the ship sank.
According to the business, the figure was shot during a 1986 excursion, but its position was unknown until this newest voyage due to a tradition of secrecy surrounding the Titanic’s wreck.
New Titanic Photos Show Major Decay To Legendary Wreck
The business said Sunday in an Instagram post about the statue that much of the art that adorned the ship’s halls and quarters “was made of organic materials, breaking down into the earth after many decades submerged in the hostile environment” of the water.
However, Diana “is still resting upright among miles of debris.” Like the ancient Roman deities, she is timeless—and she has been rediscovered thanks to Expedition 2024,” it added.
The renowned wreck is slowly fading as experts rush to preserve its history.
In 2019, footage from a series of dives conducted by Triton Submarines’ research crew revealed the impact of salt corrosion, metal-eating bacteria, and deep current action on the ship’s breakdown.
SOURCE | CNN
