What is the OceanGate Titan submersible and how does it work?
OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush emerges from the hatch atop the OceanGate submarine Cyclops 1 in the San Juan Islands, Wash., on Sept. 12, 2018. Rescuers in a remote area of the Atlantic Ocean raced against time Tuesday, June 20, 2023, to find a missing submersible before the oxygen supply runs out for five people, including Stockton, who were on a mission to document the wreckage of the Titanic. (Alan Berner/The Seattle Times via AP)
Here are some facts about the submersible that imploded near the site of the Titanic shipwreck and killed all five onboard:
* OceanGate Expeditions says it designed Titan to carry up to five people to a depth of 4,000 meters (13,120 feet). The wreckage of the cruise ship Titanic sits on the ocean floor about 3,800 meters (12,500 feet) below the surface.
* Titan weighs 9,525 kg (21,000 lbs), and can travel at a speed of 3 knots (3-1/2 miles per hour) using electric thrusters. OceanGate says it is equipped with powerful LED lights, a sonar navigation system and high-end camera equipment. It has a single porthole.
* OceanGate says Titan has a life-support system that can keep five people alive for up to 96 hours.
* Titan’s carbon-fiber walls are 5 inches (13 cm) thick, and the vessel is capped at each end with titanium domes, according to David Pogue, a CBS News journalist who traveled on Titan last year. He had to sign a liability waiver describing the vessel as “experimental” and acknowledging a risk of injury or death.
* Once passengers are inside, the hatch is bolted shut. Passengers generally sit on the floor, leaning their backs against a curved wall. There is a rudimentary toilet aboard.
* It is launched from a small platform that can be carried out to sea aboard a commercial ship and submerged a few dozen meters below the surface.
* The vehicle is operated using a video-game controller, media have reported. OceanGate workers on the surface ship track the location of Titan and send text messages to the pilot with navigation instructions.
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