TITAN Questions
Hey Patrons, as I know some of you have seen, the Coast Guard released its report on the Titan tragedy. Being that the subject is Titanic-related and this is literally a final report following the inquiry of a tragedy... I feel our inquiry should discuss it.
I have read (most of) the report and will simply be reading the most interesting parts, but I am curious what questions YOU would hope this report answers. I'll try and go through, find answers for you and then put them in the episode.
Friendly reminder: we take this tragedy very serious here at Witness Titanic. I knew at least three people who are mentioned in this report (their names were redacted) and have met others who were effected by the event. So serious questions only ;)
Comments (7)
I am curious about how much damage they may have done to the wreck itself during some of their dives…?
From what I believe, dive 80 was when they heard the big crack on dissent...apparently the dome fell off without even undoing the screws as well, back on the main vessel....and a few Staff quit....I obviously wouldn't know where to begin to build a sub....but I definitely know enough to know that a sphere shape is the starting point...tried and tested !!! ....but tbh, I only want 1 question answered...and it will never be answered....but how could someone of the stature and experience of P H Nargeolet ever set foot on that sub? 🙈💔 makes no sense to me
Plus there was already mega ambitious project with carbon fiber submersible being scrapped due to safety concerns with the carbon fiber design being used for more than once in extreme pressure conditions. Sir.Richard Branson did the right thing... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin_Oceanic?wprov=sfti1
I always wondered why the most seasoned and experienced person a true legend ( may he rest in peace ) among Titanic enthusiasts entered the whole OceanGate deal. I mean many big no no's for the industry were present from the get go. Maybe a love for the legendary vessel was simply too great...
On dive 80 they went inside titanic did they damage the ship? Could they have cause the railing to fall off and just kept quiet?
My biggest question was in the unorthodox construction of the TITAN hull, not necessarily the carbon fiber section (that has been exposed to the highest extent) no mine is about the titanium end caps. Listed in the inquiry report it shows the engineering team and Mr. Rush chose to use a sealing compound to seal the carbon fiber hull and titanium end caps together which is commonly found in the aerospace industry called LOCTITE, which is something I work extensively with on a regular basis as an aircraft mechanic. This specific compound is great for aerospace vehicles but has not been subjected to the immense compression and pressure that 6,000+ PSI exhibit at depths of 12,500 feet below sea level. My question is, why was that choice made? I know Mr. Rush was a prior aerospace engineer who worked with McDonnell-Douglas, but surely there must’ve been some red flags thrown when aerospace engineering decisions were made for a submersible craft designed to explore depths as deep as those that the RMS Titanic reside. As the report stated, the compound LOCTITE was not specifically intended for what OceanGate had in mind. Obviously if they would’ve made the decision to class the TITAN through an agency, it would’ve been called out immediately and rejected.
This doesn’t exactly pertain to the report and I’m not sure how much you’re allowed to answer, but was any analysis of the site done by RMST during Expedition 2024? If so, how much time was allowed?