A remote marine rescue is challenging in the best conditions, let alone at the depths OceanGate’s Titan submersible was travelling, with five people on board, to view the wreck of the Titanic.
During its dive under the North Atlantic Ocean on Sunday morning, the 6.7 metre-long submersible lost contact with the Polar Prince, the research vessel that ferried the Titan some 640 kilometres from St. John’s to the approximate location above the wreck site.
The remains of the Titanic rest on the ocean floor some 3,800 metres down. If the Titan plunged that low, it’s far too deep for most underwater vehicles — manned or unmanned — to travel.
“Only a tiny percentage of the world’s submarines operate that deeply,” David Marquet, a former U.S. navy submarine commander, told CBC News, noting that even the U.S. military doesn’t operate manned submarines that deep.
Locating the Titan will require remotely controlled vehicles (ROVs) that give crews on the surface a view of the depths and which can attach cables to lift the vessel to the surface — if it can be found.
Time running out for submersible crew
The U.S. coast guard estimates the crew aboard the Titan has about 40 hours of oxygen left, as of 2:30 p.m. NT.
But the clock is ticking. The vessel’s estimated 96-hour supply of oxygen is likely more than halfway depleted already, according to the U.S. coast guard, assuming it’s still intact and its passengers are still alive.
More than 48 hours into the ordeal, deep-water equipment — like ROVs — is only now arriving at the remote and vast search area.
Going deep
During a news briefing in Boston, U.S. coast guard Capt. Jamie Frederick said a nearby commercial pipe-laying vessel with ROV capability, the Deep Energy, arrived on Tuesday to support the search.
The ROVs are controlled from the surface via a cable.
But a vessel would need five or six kilometres of cable for an ROV to reach the Titanic or to search for the Titan, says Simon Boxall, an oceanographer and associate professor at the University of South Hampton, in the United Kingdom.
Deep Energy’s ROVs can only reach 3,000 metres, according to a news release.
There are “only a handful” of ROVs in the world that can go deep enough, Boxall said.
Journalist who went on Titanic expedition describes how crew could have survived
CBS News correspondent David Pogue participated in a Titanic expedition in 2022. He says mechanical issues with the Titan submersible are common, but that it has multiple redundant systems for returning to the surface.
And, even if they find it, rescuers must “work out a way to actually attach a cable to then bring it back to the surface,” he said.
OceanGate adviser David Concannon has suggested the company is working to secure equipment that could reach up to 6,000 metres.
The U.S. navy has an ROV, known as the CURV-21 (Cable-controlled Undersea Recovery Vehicle), which can operate down to 6,000 metres.
The 2,900-kilogram vessel has been used in other deep-water search and recovery operations, but it’s unclear if it will help search for the Titan.
The FADOSS is built for “the recovery of large, bulky, and heavy sunken objects,” according to the navy’s website, and can lift about 27,200 kilograms. The Titan weighs about 10,000 kilograms.
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A U.S. navy spokesperson told CBC News the FADOSS, along with other U.S. navy equipment and personnel, is expected to arrive in St. John’s Tuesday evening.
Three C-17 aircraft belonging to the U.S. air force landed there around 7:30 p.m. NT.
Why it’s so hard to find the missing Titanic submersible | About That
A submersible taking tourists to the wreck of the Titanic has disappeared. Andrew Chang breaks down what we know about the vessel, who’s on board and what it’ll take to find it.
The CURV-21 was deployed in early 2022 to salvage a U.S. F-35 fighter jet from the floor of the South China Sea. It rigged cables to the jet so it could be hoisted aboard a commercial salvage vessel 3,780 metres above.
The Pisces III, with two British crew members on board, was laying a transatlantic telephone cable when an accident on the surface caused it to sink to 480 metres.
The BBC reported the two men had an estimated 12 minutes of oxygen left when they were rescued after 76 hours inside the submersible.
Missing Titan submersible: ‘They can’t get out from the inside’
Rescue crews are racing against the clock to find Titan, a missing submersible in the North Atlantic Ocean. Retired former U.S. navy submarine commander captain David Marquet explains what the crew is likely facing and different rescue scenarios.
HOUSTON (AP) — Brian White scored in the second half to rally the Vancouver Whitecaps to a 1-1 draw with the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday night.
Houston (12-9-8) took a 1-0 lead into halftime after Ezequiel Ponce scored on a penalty kick in the seventh minute of stoppage time. Ponce’s third goal this season came after Amine Bassi drew a foul on Whitecaps midfielder Pedro Vite following a video review. It was Ponce’s sixth career appearance, all starts.
Vancouver (13-8-7) scored the equalizer in the 73rd minute when White, who entered in the 60th, used assists from Fafá Picault and Ryan Gauld to find the net for the 13th time this season. Picault’s assist was his fifth, matching his career high for a single season. Gauld’s assist gives him a career-best 13 on the season.
Yohei Takaoka, who had clean sheets in his last three starts, finished with one save in goal for the Whitecaps.
Steve Clark saved three shots for the Dynamo, who remain one point behind Vancouver in the Western Conference standings.
Houston, which was coming off a 4-1 victory over Real Salt Lake, has allowed just 33 goals this season.
Vancouver — 6-2-2 in its last 10 matches overall — leads the all-time series 10-9-6.
The Whitecaps remain on the road to play the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday. The Dynamo travel to play Austin FC on Saturday.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Tom Pearce and Nathan Saliba scored in the second half — the first goals of their careers — and CF Montreal rallied for a 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution on Wednesday night.
“In the second half, the guys came out a little more ambitious and above all, more connected,” Montreal head coach Laurent Courtois said. “It was a great second half of resilience and fighting spirit. Nathan and Sam were impressive.
“Impressive in covering the gaps and compensating for the teammates, and the individual defending – yes it’s true, it is a lot of weight on their shoulders, but that’s the job.”
New England (8-16-4) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 24th minute on Bobby Wood’s third goal of the season. Teenage defender Peyton Miller notched his first assist in his fourth career start and sixth appearance and Carles Gil picked up his ninth of the season. Peyton, at 16 years, 315 days old, is the eighth youngest player in league history to record his first assist.
The Revolution took a two-goal lead in the 35th minute and held it through halftime when 19-year-old Esmir Bajraktarevic took a pass from Gil and scored his third goal of the season and career in his first full season in the league. It was the 73rd regular-season assist in Gil’s career, tying him with Steve Ralston for the most in club history.
Montreal (7-12-10) pulled within a goal in the 54th minute when Pearce scored off a free kick after defender George Campbell drew a foul on New England’s Mark-Anthony Kaye. It was the first goal for Pearce in his third career start and fourth appearance.
“Playoffs are the goal. Maybe it wasn’t in the best form, but in the end, we are picking up a point,” Pearce said. “We came into this game confident, ready to play our own game. Everyone tries their best, whenever the players are called on, we are always ready, and we are always giving it our best.”
Montreal scored the equalizer in the 68th minute on the first career goal by Saliba, a 20-year-old midfielder. Saliba has made 34 starts and 48 appearances with Montreal in his two seasons in the league. Campbell snagged his second assist of the season and the third of his career.
“It’s an incredible feeling, it’s a goal I’ve been waiting for a long time. I’m extremely happy that I was able to score it and that it can help the team take this important point on the road,” Saliba said. “Pearce’s first goal gave us really good momentum and we kept up the pressure to go for a second goal. We got more solid defensively, and we came back ready after halftime, to push for these 3 points.”
Aljaz Ivacic finished with four saves in goal for the Revolution.
Jonathan Sirois stopped four shots for Montreal.
New England beat Montreal 5-0 on the road on Aug. 24.
New England leads the all-time series 16-13-4. Montreal improves to 5-8-2 on the road against the Revs.
The Revolution travel to take on Charlotte FC on Saturday. Montreal returns home to host the Chicago Fire on Saturday.
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Adolis García hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning, Cody Bradford pitched seven strong innings after the worst start of his career, and the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 2-0 on Wednesday night.
The win kept the defending World Series-champion Rangers alive in the AL West race, trailing first-place Houston by 10 games with 10 to play.
García launched an inside sinker over the left-field wall off Toronto starter Bowden Francis (8-5) after Wyatt Langford singled.
“He swings hard, he swings a lot,” Francis said of García. “I guess the velo was dropping during that time.”
Bradford (6-3) allowed five hits and no walks while striking out six.
The seven shutout innings are the most in a game during his two-year career. He was knocked out of his previous start after allowing career highs in hits (nine), runs (eight) and homers (three) in 3 2/3 innings in a 14-4 loss at Arizona.
“Throughout the week, you’ve got to try and digest what happened, see where I can make adjustments, whether it was just game plan went wrong or just poor execution, or a little bit of both,” Bradford said. “Then you flush it.”
Bradford was perfect through four innings before Alejandro Kirk opened the fifth with a smash back to the mound that caromed off Bradford’s left foot and rolled into right field for a single. It extended Kirk’s hitting streak to a career-high 12 games.
Spencer Horwitz’s double to left-center put runners on second and third with no outs before Bradford retired the next three batters.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider credited Bradford’s “deceptive fastball.”
“When you’re throwing 89, 92, you’ve got to have pretty good deception with that at this level,” Schneider said. “Kept us off balance.”
Kirby Yates pitched a perfect ninth inning for his 31st save in 32 opportunities.
Francis, who took no-hitters into the ninth inning in two of his previous four starts, allowed a double to Marcus Semien, the Rangers’ first hitter of the game. He gave up five hits and one walk in six innings.
Francis has a 1.96 ERA in nine starts with 54 strikeouts and seven walks since being moved back into the starting rotation in late July.
“I don’t even want to get complacent, on cruise control,” Francis said. “Just keep attacking.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Blue Jays: SS Bo Bichette was a late scratch with a right middle finger contusion suffered during infield practice. Schneider said the team will get back x-rays on Thursday. Bichette was activated Tuesday following a calf injury and played for the first time in two months, going 2 for 5 with one RBI at the plate. … INF Will Wagner (left knee inflammation) will have the knee scoped on Thursday. Schneider said Wagner should be ready to start spring training. Wagner, son of former major leaguer Billy Wagner, was acquired from Houston at the trade deadline.
UP NEXT
Rangers rookie RHP Kumar Rocker (0-0, 2.25 ERA) will make his home debut against Blue Jays RHP Kevin Gausman (12-11, 4.02) in the series finale. Rocker allowed one run in four innings at Seattle last Thursday in his major league debut.
