The anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic on April 15, 1912, is approaching. But did you know that the wreckage of the Titanic is still contributing to science 107 years later?
Researchers at Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan’s) Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) studied the Titanic to learn about the deep sea environment. Scientists including Steve Blasco, GSC Emeritus Marine Engineering Geophysicist, discovered that the waves and ripples in the sand around the ship prove there is an active current at this depth.
GSC scientists also learned that a landslide had created a scar or a bed of dense sediment where the ship lies, allowing it to sit on the ocean floor and not sink out of sight. More generally, since the Titanic has stayed in one location for over a century, GSC scientists have been able to study various geological, biological and chemical changes around the vessel over time.
RMS Titanic, the passenger line that sank over a century ago, is still making history from the Atlantic ocean floor. Steve Blasco, Emeritus Marine Engineering Geophysicist, explains what we’ve learned by studying the wreck of the famous ship.
Timestamps:
- Part 1: The Titanic as a time marker (0:00)
- Part 2: How the Titanic is held up by the sea floor (1:16)
- Part 3: Brittle steel (2:43)
- Part 4: Bacterial corrosion (3:51)
- Part 5: Looking forward (4:44)
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