An iconic piece of the Titanic has broken off from the ship and collapsed onto the ocean floor, according to a research team that conducted its first expedition to the wreckage in 14 years.
In July, researchers from RMS Titanic Inc., the company that holds the legal rights to the ship’s wreckage, visited the Titanic, which sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg while sailing to New York from Britain on its first voyage, killing about 1,500 people. It was the company’s first trip to the ship’s resting place since 2010.
The expedition came a year after the Titan submersible, which was operated by OceanGate Expeditions, imploded during a visit to the Titanic wreckage. During the most recent expedition, researchers noted a significant change to the Titanic‘s silhouette: a piece of the ship’s bow, immortalized in an iconic scene in the 1997 movie Titanic, had broken off and sank.
“Titanic’s Bow is iconic. It is a haunting image rising from the sea floor as a testament to her strength and defiance,” a website for the expedition said. “We’ve been able to watch the rusticles and sea life clinging to it evolve. In James Cameron’s 1997 film, it is where Jack had his memorable “King of the World” moment and taught Rose to fly. It’s the image that comes to mind when most people think of Titanic.”
A photo shows the missing section of the Titanic’s bow, taken during an expedition to the ship’s wreckage in July. The inset image shows the preserved bow when it was photographed in 2010.
RMS Titanic Inc.
Newsweek reached out to RMS Titanic by email for comment.
The bow has greeted expedition teams over the decades as they ventured beneath the ocean’s surface to study the ship. However, the most recent expedition revealed that a 15-foot-long piece had broken off.
“After 13 days focused on the debris field, the Expedition team was excited to get their first glance at the Bow on July 29,” the RMS Titanic website said. “However, the moment of excitement and anticipation was immediately shaken by a significant change to the familiar silhouette. The once miraculously intact railing surrounding the Bow’s forecastle deck was missing a 15-foot-long section on the port side.”
Imagery collected days before confirmed that the railing was laying on the seafloor beneath the ship, RMS Titanic said.
“We are saddened by this loss and the inevitable decay of the Ship and the debris. Over the course of the next few weeks and months, we will conduct a more thorough review of Titanic’s condition and her changes over time,” the website said. “Although Titanic’s collapse is inevitable, this evidence strengthens our mission to preserve and document what we can.”
However, the expedition also revealed some positive discoveries. Researchers captured photos of the 2-foot-tall Diane of Versailles statue, depicting the Roman goddess Diana, last photographed in 1986 and thought to be lost to the ocean. The statue was the centerpiece of the first-class lounge and now rests in the ship’s debris field on the ocean floor.
Researchers captured more than 2 million photos during the expedition.
