The five people on board a submersible visiting the wreck of the Titanic died after a “catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber.”
A “debris field” matching the submersible was discovered by a robotic deep-sea vessel on Thursday.
Here is a timeline of the events leading up to the discovery:
Friday, June 16
The expedition sets off from St John’s, Newfoundland, Canada.
We've been working hard to get ready for our 2023 Titanic Expedition that begins next month. We moved @OceanGate's sub, Titan, to The Launch at the @marineinstitute for final preparations.
The Launch has brand-new facilities with everything we need to prepare for expedition! pic.twitter.com/iLgs6CJXUI
— OceanGate Expeditions (@OceanGateExped) April 21, 2023
Saturday, June 17
British billionaire and adventurer Hamish Harding, one of those on board the submersible, posts on Facebook: “Due to the worst winter in Newfoundland in 40 years, this mission is likely to be the first and only manned mission to the Titanic in 2023. A weather window has just opened up, and we are going to attempt a dive tomorrow.”
“More expedition updates to follow IF the weather holds!”
This was his last post on Facebook.
Sunday, June 18
04am ET (08:00 GMT) – This is when the submersible was originally planned to start its descent, according to a post by Harding on Instagram. But the descent starts four hours later, according to the US Coast Guard.
8am ET (12:00 GMT) – Titan submersible starts what should be a two-hour descent to the Titanic wreck, which lies at a depth of 13,000 feet (4,000 meters) in the North Atlantic, US Coast Guard says.
9:45am ET (13:45 GMT) – Communications between the submersible and the surface vessel are lost an hour and 45 minutes after starting its descent, the US Coast Guard says.
3pm ET (19:00 GMT) – The submersible is scheduled to return to the surface, the US Coast Guard says. It fails to appear.
5:40pm ET (21:40 GMT)– Coast Guard receives a report about an overdue submersible from the Canadian research vessel Polar Prince with five people on board diving to view the Titanic wreck about 900 nautical miles (1667km) east of Cape Cod on the US coast.
Monday, June 19
US and Canadian ships and planes are swarming the area, some dropping sonobuoys that can monitor to a depth of 13,000 feet (4,000 metres), US Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger says. He adds it is a remote area and a challenge to conduct a search. Officials have also asked commercial vessels for help.
Officials say if the submersible is still intact, it is estimated to have between 70 and 96 hours of oxygen.
Tuesday, June 20
Morning – The family of Pakistani-born businessman Shahzada Dawood confirms he is on board with his 19-year-old son Suleman.
10:50am ET (14:50 GMT) – France says it will help with the search by deploying Atalante, a ship equipped with a deep-sea diving vessel.
During the day – Sounds detected over several hours by Canadian Lockheed P-3 Orion aircraft, equipped with gear to trace submarines. The US Coast Guard – which announces this on Wednesday – does not give a precise timing.
Media reports say Canadian aircraft detected banging sounds at 30-minute intervals.
Harding’s friend, Jannicke Mikkelsen, says: “And as it stands right now, it would be a miracle if they are recovered alive.”
The search becomes a big international operation. More ships, underwater vessels and aircraft join the mission.
Wednesday, June 21
During the day – US Coast Guard, US Navy, Canadian Coast Guard and OceanGate Expeditions establish a unified command to handle the search.
2am ET (06:00 GMT) – US Coast Guard announces Canadian P-3 aircraft detected underwater noises. It says remotely operated vehicle (ROV) searches are directed to the area of the sounds and the data are also sent to US Navy experts for analysis.
Thursday, June 22
6am (10:00 GMT) – Rough deadline for when the oxygen in the submersible will run out, based on the US Coast Guard’s estimate. The vessel has 96 hours of supply from the time it is sealed, according to its specifications. This depends on the vessel being intact and other factors, such as whether the sub still has power in the icy depths.
2pm (18:00 GMT) – A debris field that was found near the wreckage of the Titanic in the North Atlantic contains the pieces of the Titan submersible, officials said.
3pm (19:00 GMT) – The debris was consistent with loss of the pressure chamber and an implosion, the US Coast Guard said. There were no survivors, it added.
