Renowned Hollywood director and Titanic researcher James Cameron has spoken out about the recent loss of the diving vessel Titan, comparing it to the tragedy of the sinking of the Titanic. Designed specifically to visit the resting place of the Titanic in the ocean, the back-to-back tragedies of the Titan have left many wondering whether overconfidence played a role in causing these accidents.
Although Cameron is known for designing submersibles that can dive to deeper depths than where some believe Atlantis might be hidden, he argued that Titan’s carbon fiber construction made it fundamentally flawed from the beginning. Despite modern safety standards, the danger of crashing the Titanic a second time with passengers onboard should not exist, given the amount of experience and evolution that have gone into underwater exploration.
Cameron rode around underwater with Russian submersibles using reliable math-fixy-trixy concepts rooted firmly in science, unlike Titan, which was not equipped with adequate backup resources or ways to safely detach from its main body in case of an emergency. Sadly, the company behind Titan, OceanGate, had members of the submersible community questioning its safety measures.
Cameron admits he was surprised by the accident, considering the rarity of incidents involving deep-sea exploration. However, the lack of safety measures and previous disagreements involving lawsuits may have played a role in this tragedy. Cameron urges caution when thrusting oneself willingly into treacherous waters onboard slick shiny science wonderoos, highlighting the importance of learning from Titan’s death and implementing stronger safety measures in future underwater explorations.
