On June 18, 2023, a tragic event unfolded in the North Atlantic Ocean, near the wreck of the RMS Titanic. Titan, a submersible operated by OceanGate, was on a tourist expedition to view the iconic shipwreck with five individuals on board when it imploded under the immense pressure of the deep ocean. All five individuals on board tragically lost their lives in the incident​.

OceanGate, a private company founded by Stockton Rush and Guillermo Söhnlein in 2009, had been taking paying customers in commercial submersibles to various locations, including the site of the Titanic. Their first tourist visit to a shipwreck site was in 2016 using their submersible Cyclops 1, and they saw a unique opportunity in offering a closer look at the world's most famous shipwreck​.

The Titan was designed to dive as deep as 4,000 meters and was built from a combination of carbon fiber and titanium. In 2020, the submersible's hull was downgraded to a depth rating of 3,000 meters after demonstrating signs of cyclic fatigue and was subsequently rebuilt in 2020 and 2021. The vessel, 6.7 meters long and weighing 10,432 kg, was equipped with a 380 mm-diameter acrylic window and the entire pressure vessel consisted of two titanium hemispheres, two matching titanium interface rings, and a 2.4-meter-long carbon fiber wound cylinder​.

The Titan was equipped with a variety of safety measures. According to OceanGate, the vessel contained monitoring systems to continuously monitor the strength of the hull and had life support for five crew members for 96 hours. The support ship was responsible for navigating the Titan and providing it with directions. In the event of an emergency, the Titan had seven backup systems intended to return the vessel to the surface, including drop ballasts, a balloon, and thrusters. 

Some of the backup systems were designed to work even if all aboard the submersible were unconscious​​.

The international community responded swiftly to the incident, with search and rescue efforts led by the United States Coast Guard, United States Navy, and the Canadian Coast Guard. Aircraft from the Royal Canadian Air Force and United States Air National Guard, a Royal Canadian Navy ship, and several commercial and research ships and ROVs assisted in the search. The submersible was found after nearly 80 hours of search, with a remotely operated underwater vehicle discovering a debris field containing parts of the Titan​​.

While the exact cause of the incident is still under investigation, the pressure vessel is presumed to have imploded during or after the Titan's descent. Concerns about the safety of the vessel had been previously raised. As we remember those who lost their lives in this unfortunate incident, we also look forward to lessons learned that can help prevent such accidents in the future.

 

Let us take a moment to remember the five souls who lost their lives in the pursuit of exploration and discovery. Their passion for the unknown and their courage to venture into the deep will forever be remembered.