The US Coast Guard announced on June 22 (US time) that it had found many pieces of the Titan submersible carrying 5 people missing since June 18 in the Atlantic Ocean. The pieces were discovered at a depth of about 4,000 meters and about 488 meters from the Titanic wreck, according to Reuters. Rear Admiral John Mauger of the US Coast Guard said the pieces showed that the ship appeared to have broken apart due to external pressure (implosion).
Titan Submarine
It is not clear when the explosion occurred, but US Coast Guard officials said sonar buoys released after the search operation began "did not hear any signs of a catastrophic break-up".
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The Wall Street Journal on June 23 quoted US officials involved in the search as saying that a top-secret military acoustic detection system, designed to detect enemy submarines, heard what the Navy suspected was the Titan breaking apart. The sound was heard just hours after the Titan set off on the morning of June 18.
A US defense official said the Navy began listening for the Titan as soon as it lost contact. US systems then detected the sound of an explosion near the area where the debris was found on June 22 and notified the Coast Guard commander on the scene.
The Navy is not certain that the sound came from the Titan, but the hearing played a role in narrowing the search area. The Navy asked not to name the system used because of national security concerns.
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Previously, officials involved in the search said they heard many sounds similar to knocking from inside the ship but they could not conclude that the sound came from the Titan ship.
The Navy shared the data it collected with the Coast Guard on June 18, officials said. The U.S. has not released what the sounds were because it wants to ensure the search and rescue operation continues and because it cannot be certain the ship has broken up.
A related source said the Titan ship may have broken up on June 18 while diving into the sea after losing contact at a depth of about 9,000 feet (2,743 m).
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