A submersible that was diving towards the RMS Titanic 3,800 meters below the surface of the sea has been missing for three days. The Titan, built by undersea adventure tourism company OceanGate Expeditions, was carrying five people, and lost contact with its mother ship after just one hour and 45 minutes. There are now three expert theories over what could have happened to the vessel and its occupants, none of which offer good news for the crew or their families.
Arguably the worst-case scenario is a catastrophic rupture in the submersible’s outer shell, causing an implosion that would kill everyone onboard very quickly. It is believed that, by the time communication was lost, the Titan was around 3,500 meters deep, meaning the pressure would be equal to 345 times Earth’s atmosphere.
Another potentially deadly scenario would be if a fire broke out onboard the Titan, likely started by a short circuit in one of its electrical systems. If this did not cause the vessel to implode, occupants could be trapped underneath the water with dwindling oxygen and no way of escaping.
It’s also possible that the Titan became trapped on a piece of the Titanic wreckage, which is strewn far and wide on the ocean floor. Getting caught on debris or taking on water could prevent the Titan from surfacing, and in that case, the crew would be forced to sit and wait for rescue in a region of the ocean too deep for any human diver or almost any other vehicle to reach.
At present, there are more than 10,000 square miles of the North Atlantic being searched, with five additional rescue vessels due to arrive in the next 24-48 hours, after the estimated time when the Titan’s oxygen reserves will be exhausted. However, even if a rescue mission is successful in reaching the Titan, it is feared it would be difficult to locate the vessel.
