Titanic submarine Titan deep sea tragedy: Explained what a catastrophic implosion is

Five people aboard the Titan submersible, which went missing on June 18 near the Titanic wreckage in the Atlantic Ocean, were declared dead after the vessel’s debris field was located by search teams.

The five men on board included OceanGate CEO and founder Stockton Rush, French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, British businessman Hamish Harding, Pakistani billionaire Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood. Their deaths were confirmed by the US Coast Guard after a week-long search for survivors that captivated millions around the world.

According to the US Coast Guard, the Titan sub suffered a catastrophic implosion while descending to the wreckage of the iconic sunken ocean liner, instantly killing all five passengers on board.

Many questions still remain as to what exactly went wrong with the sub and when the implosion took place.

What is a catastrophic implosion?

A catastrophic underwater implosion essentially refers to a sudden inward collapse of any vessel. Titan’s inward collapse would have been under immense pressure as the Titanic wreck sits nearly 13,000 feet (almost 4,000 meters) below the surface of the North Atlantic Ocean. Apparently, the colossal deep-sea water pressure crushed the sub’s carbon-fiber hull.

It’s unclear where or how deep the sub was when the implosion happened. Reports suggest that the sub was about 1 hour and 45 minutes into the roughly 2 hour descent when it lost contact with its support ship, the Polar Prince.

Features of the Titanic sub

The Titan sub was operated by OceanGate Expeditions. It weighed 23,000 pounds and was made of carbon fiber and titanium. According to the company, the vessel had safety features to monitor the structural integrity of its hull.

Titan began each trip with 96 hours of life support and could sustain five adults. The minivan-sized sub had one toilet and the passengers had to sit cross legged on the floor. Interestingly, the vessel was steered by a gaming controller.

Due to Titan’s low-tech parts and risky design, OceanGate had reportedly been warned about the safety concerns of its voyages to the depths of the North Atlantic.