The OceanGate Titan submarine’s catastrophic journey near the wreckage of the Titanic has left many wondering about what could have happened to the five passengers aboard. People wonder if retrieving the victims’ remains is possible if the implosion of the Titanic submersible left any. As search and rescue efforts continue, let’s look at the challenges in finding the Titanic Submarine crew’s remains, check out Mythbusters’ video on what is an implosion, and see what might have unfolded.
Will the Titan submersible crew’s remains be found?
Deep sea experts suggest that the bodies of the five passengers aboard the Titan submersible may never be recovered from the depths of the Atlantic. This is mainly due to the harsh environment on the sea floor combined with the catastrophic implosion of the vessel.
The debris field near the Titanic’s wreckage discovered so far provides only limited clues on what might have happened. The submarine’s pressure chamber and some other components were lying near the bow of the Titanic.
The 12,500 feet depth in the Atlantic Ocean presents a harsh and inhospitable environment for any retrieval mission. In such an environment, there is immense pressure, bone-chilling temperatures, and extremely limited visibility.
How did the Titan submersible implode?
While scientists don’t know the exact cause of the implosion, a breach in the hull is a possible factor. Over the years, the submersible’s design has faced criticism for not withstanding the intense pressure of the ocean depths.
The pressure in question is a whopping 375 atmospheric units. A viral video on Twitter shows what an implosion at 1 atm looks like. It’s hard to imagine what the actual implosion would have looked like.
Some suggest that the Titanic submarine’s implosion would have been too quick for even the victims’ nervous systems to judge what was happening.
The deceased passengers include OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, British billionaire Hamish Harding, French underwater expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman.
MythBusters’ video of the Titanic submarine’s implosion
Social media users have found it difficult to understand how an implosion would unfold on a visual level. An old video from MythBusters, the popular science entertainment TV program, has been going viral for depicting how the victims may have died.
Implosion happens when an object collapses inward due to the external pressure being significantly greater than the internal pressure. In the case of the Titan submersible, the intense pressure could have compromised the structural integrity of the vessel.
Will the victims’ bodies turn into mummies?
Earlier, some reports suggested that the underwater temperatures and lack of oxygen inside the pressurized vessel of the Titan submersible may turn the victims’ bodies into mummies. This is due to the absence of decomposing microorganisms and oxygen.
However, natural mummification seems out of the picture now as the implosion has been confirmed by authorities like the US Coast Guard. Such an event would have scattered the debris all across the sea floor.
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