Expedition Titanic 2012
Diving Into History
WimmerSpace.com
Historical Background
Maiden Voyage
The Titanic began her maiden voyage from Southampton, bound for New York City on 10 April 1912, with Captain Edward J.
Smith in command. When she finally departed for New York, there were a total of 2,223 people aboard.
The Iceberg
On the night of Sunday the 14 April 1912, the moon was visible in the clear sky, the temperature had dropped to near
freezing, and the ocean was calm. Lookout Frederick Fleet was the first to see the fatal iceberg as a small mass one mile
away and he immediately alarmed the bridge. The crew tried in vain to turn the ship, but the Titanic’s course altered only
slightly allowing the iceberg to tear open the ship’s side. The Captain ordered for distress signals to be sent and the stewards
began to urge passengers to dress and put on their life vests.
The Sinking
Unfortunately the Titanic’s distress signals were never heard. On deck, people were scrambling towards the stern or jumping
overboard in hope of reaching a lifeboat. The ship's stern slowly rose into the air, exposing the propellers and everything
unsecured crashed towards the water. The Titanic carried 20 lifeboats with a total capacity of 1,178 people, less than half of
the passengers and crew members on board. The morning of the 15 April 1912 the Titanic fell into the depths, resulting in
the deaths of 1,517 people in one of the deadliest peacetime disasters maritime in history.
The Rediscovery of the Titanic
The rediscovery of the Titanic was found by Dr Robert Ballard in 1986. Since then multiple dives have been conducted by
some of the world’s five deep diving submersibles. Every dive collates data, physical samples and records imagery from the
site. The wreck itself continues to host ongoing scientific experiments conducted by world scientists.
Timeline April 14-15, 1912
J.C. Milling telegram April 14:
ABANAPAS (All well, calm weather, ship fine, having fun,
good company, nice trip).
April 14, 1912 at 23.40:
Fleet & Lee spotted iceberg. Three ring signals.
Time to impact:
35-40 seconds. “That was a narrow shave” Fleet.
Size of hole:
1.1 m2 , allowing 7 T/sec water to enter ship.
April 15, 1912 at 00.05:
Captain Smith ordered rescue boats in water after inspection together
with Thomas Andrews. “No general alarm was sounded, no whistle
blown and no systematic warning was given the passengers” (USC).
00.25:
Carpathia receives CQD. 10 emergency fireworks lit.
00.45:
SOS telegraphed out by Bride. Received by Olympic.
00.45 – 01.55
16 rescue boats put in water (some half empty).
01.55:
Lowe (5th captain) fired gun along every deck to prevent
overcrowding of last rescue boat.
02.05:
Last Engelhardtboat lowered into water. Approx 1500 people still
on ship. Orchestra playing. Front deck takes in water.
02.15:
Captain Smith relieved telegraphers from duty and returns to die at
ship bridge.
02.20
Front deck sank. Front chimney broke. Back end of ship incl .
3 propellers turned up before sinking.
Total onboard incl. crew (876):2223 persons of which 706 survived (32%).
Skewed: women/children 1st class 145/156 (92%) vs. men 2nd class 15/157 (10%).
Source: Titanic, Thomas Noergaard Olesen
Titanic Facts
Completed and left Harland & Wolff shipyard April 2, 1912.
Length & Width:
269.7 m & 28 m
Power:
50.000 hp
Top speed:
23 knots (42 km/h)
Coal consumption:
25 T/hr total load: 8000 T (5900 Maiden)
Electric cables:
350 km & 10.000 light bulbs
Breaking distance:
800 metre (at 20 knots)
Departed Southampton:
April 10, 1912
Beer bottles on board:
15.000
Scandinavian on maiden voyage:
180 (of which 13 Danish).
Notable passengers:
Henry Harper (Publisher); John Jacob
Astor (Hotelier); Ben Guggenheim
(Mining).
What Went Wrong
Unfortunate set of coincidences:
1. Warm Gulf Stream much further south in 1912 than normally
2. Exceptionally clear and calm night April 14-15, 1912
=> very difficult to spot wave impact on icebergs.
3. Too high speed in iceberg waters (21 knots). Although standard in 1912,
Schackleton: “You have no right to go at that speed in an ice zone (max 4 knots).
Iceberg spotted by Fleet & Lee at 450 m distance.
4. Regulatory shortfall: Rescue capacity was only 20 rescue boats with max 1178 persons (3560
safety belts).
5. Evacuation process: early rescue boats left half empty (only women & children).
Only 700 seats out of 1178 were used.
6. Distance to nearby vessels and communication issues.
Esp Californian (23.00: Jack Philips to Cyril Evans: “Keep out. I’m working Cape Race”).
Mount Temple: only 11 knots
Carpathia: First to reach survivors
Birma: (Russian OEK) arrived at 07.30 am at wrongly given location.
Found Carpathia at noon.
The Titanic Became a Movie Star
The Titanic tragedy was made even more legendary in 1997 when James Cameron directed one of
Hollywood's most famous love story's of all time. The relationship between Jack Dawson (Leonardo
DiCaprio) and Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) was the main focus, but many of the other characters
were based on actual Titanic passengers. Cameron's inspiration for the film was predicated on his
fascination with shipwrecks, he wanted to convey the emotional message of the tragedy, and felt that a
love story interspersed with the human loss would be essential to achieving this.
Production on the film began in 1995, when Cameron shot footage of the actual Titanic wreck on board
the Akademik Keldysh. The Akademik Keldysh is the best deep-diving support vessel in the world and is
the same one used for Wimmer’s Titanic Expedition 2012.
Production costs for the film amounted to $200 million, making it one of the most expensive movie ever
made. The film won a total of 11 Oscars as well as 76 wins and 48 nominations and after its release in
1997 it became the highest grossing film of all time pulling in over $1.8 billion worldwide.
Motivation For Centennial Titanic Dive
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Adventure motive: From flying to a deep ocean dive
Titanic most iconic ocean dive site in the world
Centennial – 100 years on….
Last chance: Dive operations to Titanic likely to stop after Centennial
Indirectly subsidizing scientific observations and analysis
Honor and respect to the descendants of the families affected by remembering
that tragic night.
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Titanic 100 Years Later….
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Getting there...
Akademik Keldysh
The Akademik Keldysh is the best deep-diving support vessel in the world. Owned and operated by the
Moscow-based P.P Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, its crew of scientists and technicians have worked together
for over 17 years, participating in deep-dive expeditions all over the world. In addition to its many laboratories,
the Keldysh features a library covering underwater archaeology, oceanography and deep-sea exploration.
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Going Down…
MIR I & II
MIR I and II are deep-diving submersibles capable of reaching ocean depths of 20,000 feet. Housed aboard The mothership Akademik
Keldysh, the two MIR submersibles are two of only six deep-diving vessels available to the world’s scientific community. Constructed of
nickel steel, they are designed to withstand the enormous pressures that exist in the depths of the oceans. Each MIR cabin is a 2.1 m
diameter sphere, accommodating three persons. Air pressure inside the habitat remains at a constant one atmosphere; the air is
10 the dive, there will be a drop in temperature to approx. 12C.
recycled in a manner similar to that used onboard a spacecraft. During
The Titanic Expedition 2012
- Dive Itinerary
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July 13: Arrive St. John’s, Newfoundland
– Meet the Deep Ocean Expeditions team and the other dive participants, orientation and briefing.
July 14: St. John’s / At Sea
– Board the expedition vessel and set sail on the exciting journey towards the Titanic wreck site, lying
in international waters 380 miles to the southeast of Newfoundland.
July 15: At Sea, en route Titanic site
– Explore the extraordinary research ship and prepare for the upcoming 12,500 foot dive to the most
famous shipwreck in the world.
July 16 -21: Arrival at the Titanic site / Dives to the Titanic wreck
– The dive to the Titanic will be made aboard either the MIR I or MIR II submersibles
– It takes 2.5 hours to reach the ocean floor, 12,500 feet beneath the surface
– During the three to four hours down at the Titanic wreck site, the dive will focus on the bow section,
the largest and most impressive section of the wreck, numerous artifacts strewn across on the ocean
floor, as well as the ship’s giant boilers, enormous propellers and the famous grand staircase.
July 22: Departing the Titanic site
– Final day at the Titanic wreck site
July 23: En route St. John’s Newfoundland
– A day at sea and a day of reflecting on the incredible diving achievement
July 24: Arrival St. John’s Newfoundland and Disembarkation
– End of this amazing journey
Titanic And Nearby Vessels April 15, 1912
Source: Titanic, Thomas Noergaard Olesen
The Titanic Expedition 2012
- The Expedition Team
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Per Wimmer
Founder of Wimmer Financial and Wimmer Space
Entrepreneur, Adventurer, Author, Pioneer
Scheduled to be the first Dane in space. In 2008 he
completed the first tandem sky dive over Mount Everest.
Rob McCallum
General Manager (DOE), Professional expedition
leader. Member of the Explorers Club
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Mike McDowell
Deep Ocean Expeditions (DOE) was founded
in 1998 by Australian diver, climber and
adventurer Mike McDowell along with several
colleagues
Don Walsh
Retired Navy Captain, submarine commander, Oceanographer,
Professor of Ocean Engineering,
Author, Lecturer, President of Explorers Club
Additional 10-15 adventurers will participate in the Expedition
About Deep Ocean Expeditions
Deep Ocean Expeditions adheres to three simple founding principles:
• To offer unique experiences for the adventurer
• To educate people about the world’s deep oceans
• To help support scientific research
Deep Ocean Expeditions is interested in educating by adventure. Only a small percentage of the world’s oceans have been explored.
Deep Ocean Expeditions works with partners and colleagues, including the PP Shirshov Institue, to expand opportunities for deep
ocean research and documentations as a way of increasing the knowledge and understanding of our planets’ major geographical
feature. All submersible dives are conducted with negligible or no impact on our oceans. All sites, whether they be manmade or
natural, are treated with the greatest of respect.
Titanic Deck
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Titanic Doors
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Never Forget…
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Motivation For Per Wimmer
Per Wimmer is a global financier, author, entrepreneur, adventurer, a pioneer and a philanthropist - or, as a
commentator has argued, a true "Indiana Jones meets 007 James Bond.“
Mankind exists in a human sphere that expands 10 km up in the air and 1 km below the sea surface. Within this
span people’s comfort zone lies. However, Per likes to push these boundaries and is doing so by flying into space
(min 100 km) and now diving down to the Titanic wreck 3.8 km under sea level.
Per Wimmer's story is about making dreams reality. Turning into reality what appears to be a far-fetched vision
which few people consider achievable. Per is scheduled to become the first Dane in space and currently holds
three space flight reservations. On Oct 6, 2008, Per Wimmer made world history, together with Ralph Mitchell, by
successfully completing the first tandem sky dive over the highest point on earth, Mount Everest. This adventure,
"Everest from the top," had never been done before and pushing the boundaries, being a pioneer is, indeed, part
of what drives him..
Adventure travelling has taken him to more then 60 countries on earth and with this new adventure Per will be
exploring a world few people have seen. To explore one of the worlds most iconic shipwrecks, to learn more about
the tragic day 100 years ago and to honour and respect the families affected by the tragic night, will be a once in a
lifetime experience. Furthermore, dive expeditions to the Titanic wreck site are likely to stop after the Centennial
which makes this perhaps the last chances to experience this majestic site.
Contact Information
Wimmer Space
3-5 Swallow Place
London W1B 2AF, UK.
Tel. (+44) 778.875. 7677
Tel. (+44) 207.432.7513
Email: [email protected].
Web: www.WimmerSpace.com