The submersible that went missing Sunday as it tried to reach the Titanic wreckage at the bottom of the North Atlantic is believed to have officially run out of emergency oxygen.
The submersible, named the Titan, departed off the coast of St. John’s, Newfoundland, on Sunday but lost contact with the mother ship less than two hours after it began its descent in search of the Titanic wreckage. While authorities are unsure if the submersible is still intact, experts say the craft only had 96 hours of emergency oxygen at the time of its departure, according to Reuters.
Rear Admiral John W. Mauger said Thursday morning the Coast Guard would “continue with the search and rescue efforts” throughout the rest of the day despite the chance the oxygen may have run out.
Rear Admiral John W. Mauger tells @TODAYShow that the Coast Guard is “going to continue with the search and rescue efforts” throughout Thursday despite fears of the oxygen supply on the vessel running out. https://t.co/SMaYxis2vy
— NBC News (@NBCNews) June 22, 2023
A glimmer of hope emerged Tuesday when Canadian surveillance planes detected underwater sound, reportedly described by some as “banging noises.” The sounds were heard both Tuesday and Wednesday, according to NPR. (RELATED: Wife Of Missing Submersible Pilot Is Great-Great-Grandaughter Of Passengers Who Sank On Titanic)
Meanwhile, Canada deployed a ship called the Horizon Arctic, which will search for the Titan via a remote-controlled underwater vehicle on the sea floor, according to CTV News.
There are five passengers onboard the missing submersible: billionaire British explorer Hamish Harding, French oceanographer and Titanic researcher Paul-Henri Nargeolet, OceanGate CEO and pilot Stockton Rush, wealthy Pakistani business mogul Shahzada Dawood and his son, 18-year-old Suleman.
Rush complained of “obscenely safe” regulations back in a 2019 interview with Smithsonian Magazine, arguing the allegedly strict rules prevented innovation within the “commercial sub” industry. Marine Technology Society member Bart Kemper said OceanGate was able to dodge some regulations by deploying the sub in international waters where U.S. laws aren’t applicable, according to Insider.