A missing Titanic submersible, which has prompted a frantic search, can only receive messages when it is directly below a support ship, it has been revealed.
The small vessel, operated by OceanGate Expeditions, disappeared just 1 hour and 45 minutes into its dive to the famed wreckage of the Titanic on June 18.
It reportedly has five people on board including British adventurer Hamish Harding, businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, French explorer Paul-Henry Nargeolet, and Stockton Rush, the chief executive of OceanGate.
The organization operates tourist dives to the wreck site, priced at $250,000. One previous passenger is CBS reporter David Pogue.
He told the BBC that rescue teams are likely struggling due to there being "no way" to communicate with the sub.
"When the support ship is directly over the sub, they can send short text messages back and forth. Clearly those are no longer getting a response," Pogue told the British broadcasting service.
OceanGate's Titan submersible is a compact sub with a four-day emergency supply of oxygen on board.
The sub would have had an acoustic link with the vessel floating on the surface, through a sonar signal device.
The vessels can send short messages back and forth, however the data shared between the two is extremely limited, Stefan Williams, a professor at the School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering Australian Centre for Field Robotics at the University of Sydney, reported on The Conversation.
The data shared between the two vessels will only include "basic telemetry and status information," Williams says.
So what could have happened?
Given that all contact with the submersible has been lost, it could have undergone a power failure.
"Ideally, there would be an emergency backup power source (such as an independent battery) to maintain emergency and life support equipment—but it's unclear if the missing vessel had any power backup on hand," Williams wrote on The Conversation.
It is likely that sonar buoys being used to search for the vessel are trying to find any sign of distress signals or underwater noise, he said.
Where Is the Titanic Wreck?
The Titanic wreckage lies in an extremely remote area of the Atlantic Ocean, complicating rescue missions further.
The ship hit an iceberg in April 1912, causing it to sink, killing more than 1,500 people.
Today, the wreckage lies 13,000 feet below the surface of the ocean, southeast of Newfoundland, Canada.
As the wreck lies such a deep way into the ocean, the water pressure is a danger.
However, the Titan will have been built to withstand these intense pressures. A worst-case scenario is that the vessel suffered a pressure housing failure.
A statement from OceanGate said that it is "exploring and mobilizing all options to bring the crew back safely."
"Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families. We are deeply thankful for the extensive assistance we have received from several government agencies and deep sea companies in our efforts to reestablish contact with the submersible. We are working toward the safe return of the crewmembers," the statement read.
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Update 06/20/2023 7.26 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include the names of the people reportedly on board.
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Robyn White is a Newsweek Nature Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on wildlife, science and the ... Read more
