Rare Titanic underwater footage released for the first time

Some rare footage that shows the wreck of the Titanic at the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean has been released, and you can see it in the video below:

We all know the story of the Titanic.

Whilst a whole generation of people came to it through Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet starring in James Cameron’s Titanic movie, the story is one of the most famous examples in world history of hubris leading to disaster.

It sank back in April 1912, despite having been described by many as ‘unsinkable’.

Spoiler alert, it wasn’t.

Launched in late March 1912, she struck an iceberg in the final minutes of 14 April whilst on her maiden voyage, before sinking quickly in the small hours of the following day, less than three hours after the collision.

After she came to rest on the bottom of the ocean, 1,500 people lost their lives in the wreck and in the horrifically cold water around it.

WHOI Archive

Even more than 110 years later, the Titanic continues to capture the public imagination, which is why there is interest around some new footage that has been released showing the final resting place of perhaps the world’s most famous vessel.

Taken by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) back in July 1986, just a few months after the wreckage was rediscovered, the video shows the iconic bow of the boat, as well as the decking and some equipment that has survived the years underwater.

It’s haunting, you’d have to agree.

WHOI Archive

Shot around two miles beneath the depths of the ocean, much of this footage hasn’t been seen before.

It also shows inside the vessel, as well as the marine creatures that now call the wreck home.

Many efforts had been made to find the wreck before 1985, but it wasn’t found until September 1985, which led to the cameras being sent down months later.

A press release from WHOI said: “By 1985, WHOI had developed new imaging technology, including Argo, a camera sled that was towed from the research vessel Knorr and captured the first photographs of the ship beneath more than 12,400 feet of water.”

The release of this new footage ‘marks the first time humans set eyes on the ill-fated ship since 1912 and includes many other iconic scenes’.

WHOI Archive

Cameron also commented on the new footage, which comes around the 25^th anniversary of the film’s release.

He said: “More than a century after the loss of Titanic, the human stories embodied in the great ship continue to resonate,

“Like many, I was transfixed when Alvin and Jason Jr. [the two submarines who shot the footage] ventured down to and inside the wreck.

“By releasing this footage, WHOI is helping tell an important part of a story that spans generations and circles the globe.”