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Titanic sub latest news: What we know about search for the OceanGate submersible Titanic sub latest news: What we know about search for the OceanGate submersible
(about 1 hour later)
Watch: The BBC's Carl Nasman talks through what we know about the missing subWatch: The BBC's Carl Nasman talks through what we know about the missing sub
Watch: The BBC's Carl Nasman talks through what we know about the missing subWatch: The BBC's Carl Nasman talks through what we know about the missing sub
A massive search and rescue effort is under way in the North Atlantic after a submersible exploring the wreck of the Titanic went missing on Sunday. A massive search and rescue effort is continuing in the North Atlantic after a submersible exploring the wreck of the Titanic went missing deep under the ocean on Sunday. There are five people on board.
The research vessel Polar Prince lost contact with the crew of the Titan sub an hour and 45 minutes into its dive. Search authorities estimate that the sub has fewer than 30 hours of oxygen left - meaning supplies are set to run out by around 10:00 GMT (06:00 EDT) on Thursday. Researchers aboard the Polar Prince - its mothership on the surface - lost contact with the crew shortly after the Titan began its dive. There is limited oxygen on board, and it is estimated that supplies are set to run out by around 10:00 GMT (06:00 EDT) on Thursday.
A Canadian aircraft has now detected "underwater noises" in the search area. Banging noises have now been detected in the search area, but it is not known where they are coming from or what they mean.
Tour firm OceanGate says it is exploring all options to get the crew back safely, and government agencies have joined the rescue operation. Here is what we know so far. US, Canadian and French agencies are working together to locate the submersible, and the tour firm OceanGate says it is exploring all options to get it back safety. Here is what we know so far.
What is the latest on the rescue effort? What's the latest on the search?
In the early hours of Wednesday, the US Coast Guard said Canada's P-3 search plane had detected "underwater noises in the search area". A Canadian search plane has picked up underwater noises. Deep-sea experts say it is hard to determine what these noises might be without seeing the data.
"As a result, ROV (remotely operated vehicle) operations were relocated in an attempt to explore the origin of the noises. Those ROV searches have yielded negative results but continue," the coast guard tweeted. But it is possible they could be short, sharp, relatively high frequency noises - made from within the vessel by hitting a hard object against the end of the sub.
Earlier, two US media outlets had reported a leaked US Department of Homeland Security memo which said "banging sounds" had been detected by another Canadian aircraft, a P-8, equipped with underwater detection capabilities. The US Coast Guard has sent ROVs - remotely operated vehicles - to search under the surface in that area. You can read more about the equipment being used in our visual guide.
As of Tuesday afternoon local time, US and Canadian forces and private vessels had searched a 7,600 square mile area, roughly the size of the US state of Connecticut, according to US Coast Guard Capt Jamie Frederick. Planes are continuing to search from the air, in case Titan has returned to the ocean's surface but somehow lost communications.
Capt Frederick said the search was "very complex" and a "unique operation" made more difficult by the remoteness of the area. A French vessel equipped with a deep-sea underwater robot should arrive in the area by Wednesday afternoon, local time.
A commercial pipe-laying ship has also arrived in the area to help, said David Mearns, a marine scientist and expedition leader who has been following the operation.
"We're just hoping that it has the capabilities to reach those kind of depths - 3,800 metres - to search for the submersible and have the ability to recover it," he told the BBC. "There is some hope that that could happen."
More on the Titanic sub
LIVE: Follow the Titanic submersible rescue operation
Who is on the Titanic sub?
A visual guide to the Titanic sub rescue mission
The Polar Prince first arrived near the Titanic wreck on Sunday morning and the Titan was scheduled to start its dive early that day at 04:00 local time. The Titan lost contact with the surface one hour and 45 minutes into its descent, at about 09:45 local time.
There was a delay between when the the Polar Prince lost contact with the submersible and when the US Coast Guard was notified.
The Coast Guard said they were notified of the problem at about 17:45 - eight hours later. The agency's command centre in Boston then began coordinating search efforts.
Watch: Who is involved in search efforts
Watch: Who is involved in search efforts
The Titan submersible is thought to be approximately 900 miles (1450km) east and 400 miles (643km) south of St. Johns, Newfoundland.
The US Coast Guard's Rear Admiral John Mauger said on Monday that the search has two aspects: a surface search in case the Titan has returned to the ocean's surface but somehow lost communications, and an underwater sonar search.
Two C-130 Hercules aircraft from the US Coast Guard, a Canadian C-130 and the Canadian coast guard vessel Kopit Hopson are assisting with the search - as well as sonar buoys that detect underwater sounds. Horizon Maritime, which co-owns the Polar Prince, is also helping and has sent a second vessel, the Horizon Arctic, to the site.
Mr Mauger said additional expertise would be needed to rescue the vessel if it was found underwater, and that the Coast Guard has reached out to the US Navy and private sector for help.
Mike Mulroy, a former US undersecretary of defence, told the BBC that specialised US Navy remote submersibles would likely be the only vessels capable of tethering with the submarine and dragging it to the surface.
Who was on board?
Among the five people on board the Titan, four people so far have been confirmed - Hamish Harding, a 58-year-old British businessman and explorer, British businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son, Suleman Dawood, 19, and 77-year-old French explorer Paul-Henry Nargeolet.
Mr Harding announced he was joining the team earlier this month, and said that the crew on the vessel includes "a couple of legendary explorers, some of which have done over 30 dives to the RMS Titanic since the 1980s".
Hamish Harding said on Instagram he was "proud to finally announce" he would be aboard the mission to the wreck
British adventurer among missing on Titanic sub
Mr Harding is the chairman of Action Aviation, an international company which deals with sales and operations in the business aviation industry, based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The Explorers Club, of which Mr Harding is a founding member, shared an upbeat message after sounds were detected, saying the "likely signs of life" were a "cause for hope".
French explorer Paul-Henry Nargeolet was also on board, a family spokesman told the BBC. The explorer, nicknamed "Mr Titanic", is a former French navy diver and has reportedly spent more time at the wreckage of the Titanic than any other explorer.
OceanGate - the firm behind the dive - has also confirmed that chief executive Stockton Rush was on board the sub when it went missing.
What was the sub doing and where is the Titanic?
OceanGate Expeditions charges guests $250,000 (£195,270) for a place on its eight-day expedition to see the famous wreck, which sits 3,800m (12,500ft) beneath the surface at the bottom of the Atlantic.
The site is about 600km (370 miles) off the coast of Newfoundland, and lies in two parts, with the bow and the stern separated by about 800m (2,600ft). A huge debris field surrounds the broken vessel.
A full dive to the wreck, including the descent and ascent, reportedly takes eight hours.
Each expedition lasts eight days, according to OceanGate, and each dive is meant to include a scientific objective, including studying the wreck's decay.
The inaugural dive took place in 2021, according to the company's website.
First ever full-sized scans reveal wreck as never seen before
What might have happened to it?What might have happened to it?
Submarine expert Prof Alistair Greig from University College London has worked through a number of scenarios for where the missing submersible might be, he told BBC Science Correspondent Pallab Ghosh. Prof Alistair Greig, a submarine expert from University College London, says one of the big problems is that rescuers do not know whether to look on the surface or the seabed - it is very unlikely to be in between.
One is that it released a "drop weight" after an emergency, in order to bring it to the surface. He's worked through a couple of scenarios. One is that it released a "drop weight" after an emergency, in order to bring it to the surface.
"If there was a power failure and/or communication failure, this might have happened, and the submersible would then be bobbing about on the surface waiting to be found," he said."If there was a power failure and/or communication failure, this might have happened, and the submersible would then be bobbing about on the surface waiting to be found," he said.
Another scenario, he says, is that the hull was compromised resulting in a leak. "Then the prognosis is not good." Another possibility is that the hull was compromised resulting in a leak. "Then the prognosis is not good," he says.
If it has gone down to the seabed and can't get back up under its own power, the options - according to Prof Greig - are very limited. How deep is it and can they reach it?
The bow of the Titanic is still instantly recognisable even after so long underwater
The wreck of the Titanic sits 3,800m (12,500ft) beneath the surface of the Atlantic. If the submersible has gone down to the seabed and can't get back up under its own power, the options are very limited.
We know there are very few vessels that can get that deep, and certainly not divers. The vehicles designed for navy submarine rescues can't get anywhere near as deep as would be needed.
According to OceanGate, the company that owns it, Titan is one of only five manned submersibles in the world capable of reaching the depth required.
The US Navy does have an ROV that can operate at that depth and used it to locate and recover a crashed fighter jet from a depth of 3,780m (12,400 feet) in the South China Sea last year.
In that case, the US military used the ROV to attach rigging around the aircraft and connect it to a lifting hook that was lowered from a crane on the rescue vessel on the surface.
Who's on board?
Suleman Dawood, 19, and father Shahzada Dawood, 48
The five people on board are:
Hamish Harding, a 58-year-old British businessman and explorer
Shahzada Dawood, 48-also a British businessman -and his son, Suleman Dawood, 19
Paul-Henry Nargeolet, a 77-year-old French explorer nicknamed "Mr Titanic"
Stockton Rush, 61, is the chief executive of OceanGate, the firm behind the dive
You can read more about them all here.
How much does a dive cost?
OceanGate Expeditions charges guests $250,000 (£195,270) for a place on its eight-day expedition to see the wreck of the Titanic.
The site is about 600km (370 miles) off the coast of Canada's Newfoundland, and lies in two parts, with the bow and the stern separated by about 800m (2,600ft). A huge debris field surrounds the broken vessel.
A full dive to the wreck, including the descent and ascent, reportedly takes eight hours and each trip is meant to include a scientific objective, including studying the wreck's decay.
The inaugural dive took place in 2021, according to the company's website.
Is it really operated by a video games controller?
Watch: In 2022, the BBC filmed inside the Titanic sub with the company's boss Stockton RushWatch: In 2022, the BBC filmed inside the Titanic sub with the company's boss Stockton Rush
Watch: In 2022, the BBC filmed inside the Titanic sub with the company's boss Stockton RushWatch: In 2022, the BBC filmed inside the Titanic sub with the company's boss Stockton Rush
"While the submersible might still be intact, if it is deeper than more than 200m (656ft) there are very few vessels that can get that deep, and certainly not divers. The vehicles designed for navy submarine rescue certainly can't get down to anywhere near the depth of the Titanic." The Titan is extremely small and narrow, measuring just 670 cm x 280 cm x 250 cm (22ft x 9.2ft x 8.3ft) and can carry a crew of just five people - a pilot and four passengers, who have to sit on the floor and have limited room to move around.
What do we know about the Titan?
The Titan is a five-person submersible built to descend to depths of 4,000 metres (2.5 miles) and travels at three knots - that's about 3.5 miles per hour.
Aside from taking divers to the wreck of the Titanic, it's used for site survey and inspection, research and data collection, film and media production, and deep sea testing of hardware and software.Aside from taking divers to the wreck of the Titanic, it's used for site survey and inspection, research and data collection, film and media production, and deep sea testing of hardware and software.
According to the company, the Titan is "outfitted with state-of-the-art lighting and sonar navigation systems plus internally and externally mounted 4K video and photographic equipment".According to the company, the Titan is "outfitted with state-of-the-art lighting and sonar navigation systems plus internally and externally mounted 4K video and photographic equipment".
According to OceanGate's website, the five-person sub has a system for monitoring the vessel's hull in real time.
Scans of Titanic reveal wreck as never seen before
It has sensors to analyse the effects of changing pressure on the sub as it dives, in order to assess the integrity of the structure.
"This onboard health analysis monitoring system provides early warning detection for the pilot with enough time to arrest the descent and safely return to surface," the company says.
The BBC's US partner CBS sent one of its reporters on a voyage with the same company last year to see the wreck of the Titanic.The BBC's US partner CBS sent one of its reporters on a voyage with the same company last year to see the wreck of the Titanic.
David Pogue, who went on board, reported that he read a waiver that described the submersible as an "experimental" vessel, "that has not been approved or certified by any regulatory body, and could result in physical injury, disability, emotional trauma or death". Stockton Rush then gave him a tour of the submersible, where he revealed the vessel only has one button and is run using a video game controller.
Mr Rush then gave him a tour of the submersible, where he revealed the vessel only has one button and is run using a video game controller. It is not unusual for off-the-shelf game controllers to be used in real-life vehicles. However, the Washington Post reports that the one seen in the CBS report appeared to be an old model.
When did it go missing?
Watch: Who is involved in search efforts
Watch: Who is involved in search efforts
The Polar Prince first arrived near the Titanic wreck on Sunday morning and the Titan was launched at 08:00 local time - it was expected to resurface at 15:00. Contact was lost one hour and 45 minutes into its descent, at about 09:45.
The Coast Guard said they were notified of the problem at about 17:45 - eight hours later. The agency's command centre in Boston then began coordinating search efforts.
It's thought to be approximately 900 miles (1450km) east and 400 miles (643km) south of St. Johns, Newfoundland.
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