| Author |
Message |
sabertooth1217
UPN Boycotter
Joined: 21 Jun 2003
Posts: 11484
Location: Texas
|
 Sun Nov 14, 2004 1:58 pm Titanic explorer fears for future of shipwreck |
|
Titanic explorer fears for future of shipwreck
| Quote: | WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- Undersea tourists and souvenir hunters are hastening the decay of the Titanic, says U.S. explorer Bob Ballard, who discovered the world's most famous shipwreck nearly 20 years ago.
In a visit last June to the site of the Titanic -- his first since 1985 -- Ballard was shocked at how fast the wreckage had deteriorated. Now he wants Congress to pass legislation giving greater protection to the sunken vessel.
Most alarming, he said, was damage caused by submersibles -- small underwater crafts -- landing on the deck of the Titanic, which hit an iceberg and sank in the North Atlantic on April 14, 1912, on its maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York.
"It's sort of like going into the Louvre (Museum in Paris) with a bulldozer," said Ballard of the submersibles landing on the deck of the once-luxury liner.
Ballard will be in Washington this week, lobbying for Congress to approve a treaty signed by the State Department in June aimed at protecting the wreck of the Titanic.
He said he hopes France and Russia -- from where many tour operators to the Titanic operate -- will sign the treaty. Britain signed the accord in November 2003.
In his 2004 expedition to the Titanic, Ballard used a remote operated vehicle to take thousands of digital images of the ship and compared them against pictures taken in 1985.
Most notable was a deterioration of the promenade deck where submersibles had bumped or landed on the ship. In 2001, an American couple got married in a submersible on the deck.
Pictures showing these changes are in Ballard's glossy new book "Return to Titanic" published by National Geographic, where Ballard is an Explorer-In-Residence.
In addition, the mast has been stripped of its bell and its brass light is missing. There was a recent gash on the bow section where the name Titanic used to be and part of the brass telemotor that once held the ship's wooden wheel is twisted.
Items removed
There was less biological decay than Ballard expected although much of the ship was covered in icicles of rust.
About 6,000 artifacts have been removed from the Titanic and its debris field since Ballard found the ship 13,000 feet below the surface of the North Atlantic.
There are two schools of thought on the Titanic -- some think the wreck should be salvaged while others, like Ballard, say it should be preserved as a mark of respect for the 1,523 people who are buried in the deep sea grave.
"The greatest museum on earth is beneath the sea and we have the technology to go there. The question is, are we going there to appreciate this history or plunder it?" said Ballard.
He understands the fascination people have in wanting to get close to the vessel. Movies such as the 1997 blockbuster "Titanic" have only boosted this curiosity.
But Ballard says new technology could turn the Titanic into a virtual museum rather than let salvagers plunder it. The Titanic could be wired to beam information to people's home computers.
"We have robots on Mars, we have put humans on the moon, it's not a big deal to have live access to the Titanic."
He fears if the Titanic is not protected, other lesser-known ships have no hope of being respected.
"If we can't protect the Titanic, we can't protect anything. The Titanic is my soap box to talk about this larger issue about ancient history," he said.
He estimates there are more than a million ships of antiquity lost in the deep sea. Like the Titanic, he says, these could provide important information about our history. |
http://www.cnn.com/2004/TRAVEL/11/14/titanic.reut/index.html
|
|
|
Link, the Hero of Time
Vice Admiral
Joined: 15 Sep 2001
Posts: 5581
Location: Kokori Forest, Hyrule
|
| Sun Nov 14, 2004 5:01 pm |
|
I'm sorry, but looting something as historical as the Titanic... That just goes to far.
From a Marine Archaeological perspective, I hope this piece of legislation passes. If we cannot protect something this precious from looters and defacers I fear there may soon be nothing left but pictures to pass on to the next generation.
I mean seriously, the ship has been there for a little less then 100 years and it's still in good condition. It could be there for longer if people stop with their idiotic actions that are destroying this landmark find.
-------signature-------
"Dissent is the highest form of patriotism." President Thomas Jefferson
"A man's respect for law and order exists in precise relationship to the size of his paycheck." Adam Clayton Powell Jr.
|
|
|
Otter
Fleet Admiral
Joined: 12 Oct 2004
Posts: 12895
Location: England
|
| Mon Nov 15, 2004 12:39 pm |
|
Some lowlife's will take anything!
|
|
|
TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
|
| Mon Nov 15, 2004 5:33 pm |
|
I've heard about that.
It makes me so mad. The Titanic is a piece of history. If they could have put it in museum, they would have done it.
Whoever is stealing things from it..argg, I can't even put it into words. They are horrible! I hope they do something to stop this...
|
|
|
Jeremy
J's Guy
Joined: 03 Oct 2002
Posts: 7823
Location: Aberdeen, Scotland
|
| Mon Nov 15, 2004 5:42 pm |
|
I don't think the people are doing it deliberatly as in "I'll take this and sell it". It's probably more like "Hey, that looks cool, I'll take it and have it for when I get home, my own piece of the Titanic!" While I don't agree with it in some ways you can understand it. It's what tourists all over the world do with things.
|
|
|
Hitchhiker
Rear Admiral
Joined: 11 Aug 2004
Posts: 3514
Location: Ontario, Canada
|
| Mon Nov 15, 2004 6:07 pm |
|
Yeah, just like with the coral reefs around Australia. They're damaging that delicate ecosphere. 
|
|
|
PrankishSmart
Rear Admiral
Joined: 29 Apr 2002
Posts: 4779
Location: Hobart, Australia.
|
| Tue Nov 16, 2004 10:26 am |
|
I think that as many relics as possible should be retrieved as quickly as possible by professionals not looters, and put into museums. Because, the titanic in another 100-200 years the ship will implode from the weakened hull and destoroy most of it's self anyway. Thats just my opinion.
|
|
|
Curtis
Fleet Admiral
Joined: 29 Sep 2001
Posts: 14903
Location: Wisconsin
|
| Tue Nov 16, 2004 12:15 pm |
|
| Link, the Hero of Time wrote: | I'm sorry, but looting something as historical as the Titanic... That just goes to far.
From a Marine Archaeological perspective, I hope this piece of legislation passes. If we cannot protect something this precious from looters and defacers I fear there may soon be nothing left but pictures to pass on to the next generation.
I mean seriously, the ship has been there for a little less then 100 years and it's still in good condition. It could be there for longer if people stop with their idiotic actions that are destroying this landmark find. |
I agree, if you need money...get a job, don't loot something historic.
|
|
|
TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
|
| Tue Nov 16, 2004 4:52 pm |
|
| PrankishSmart wrote: | | I think that as many relics as possible should be retrieved as quickly as possible by professionals not looters, and put into museums. Because, the titanic in another 100-200 years the ship will implode from the weakened hull and destoroy most of it's self anyway. Thats just my opinion. |
That's a good idea.
The one problem I can think of: technically that ship is a grave site, the relitives from people who died on that ship are still here, and probably wouldn't like the idea of parts of the site being removed. Even if the purpose is to preserve them.
|
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group
Star Trek �, in all its various forms, are trademarks & copyrights of Paramount Pictures
This site has no official connection with Star Trek or Paramount Pictures
Site content/Site design elements owned by Morphy and is meant to only be an archive/Tribute to STV.com
|
Search
FAQ
Log in
