Detail

The first image of the Titan submarine lying on the ocean floor since last year’s devastating explosion was released by the US Coast Guard on Monday as investigators began a hearing into the tragedy.

In a photo shown during the hearing on Monday, the submarine’s broken tail cone lies on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. The hull section is separated from the rest of the ship, its edges frayed, and a piece of the ship can be seen nearby.

Screenshot from the search team’s video of the Titan submarine explosion / Photo by Pelagic Research Services/U.S. Coast Guard

The wreckage was found hundreds of yards from where the Titanic sank, investigators said at a hearing expected to last until Sept. 27 in North Charleston, South Carolina.

The Maritime Commission of Inquiry said in its opening submission that the tail cone and other debris were discovered by a remotely operated vehicle on June 22 last year and provided “convincing evidence” that the submarine had suffered a catastrophic explosion (a sudden internal collapse of the hull due to immense pressure and subsequent explosion).

Disaster victims

The founder and CEO of the company that operates the ship, Stockton Rush, businessman Shahzada Dawood and her 19-year-old son Suleman Dawood, adventurer Hamish Harding and French diver Paul-Henri Narjolet lost their lives.

The Maritime Commission of Inquiry confirmed on Monday that the recovered remains were matched by DNA to the five men on the ship.

On Monday, the commission called its first witnesses, including former employees of OceanGate, the company that developed and operates the submarine.

The last message sent by the crew

The trial also revealed the last messages from the submarine, just seconds before it lost contact with the surface ship Polar Prince, with the mother ship’s crew requesting information about the submarine’s depth and weight during the dive.

Titan’s message to the mothership read, “Two kilos down,” referring to the weight the submarine would have to drop in hopes of returning to the surface. A few seconds later, Titan made one final “okay” signal (apparently non-verbal), and then communication was lost forever.

Search process

In the following days, an international search and rescue mission was launched in remote waters several hundred miles southeast of Newfoundland, Canada.

Rescuers made an effort to conceal the debris, but reporters managed to sneak some photos. Officially, the investigation or the company never released the images.

The front cover of the submarine “Titan” / Photo: BBC

Equipment bay and antenna / Photo by BBC

Part of the submarine’s hull / Photo: BBC

How the hearing will be held

The Canadian Coast Guard said the hearings will cover “historical events leading up to the accident, regulatory compliance, crew responsibilities and qualifications, mechanical and structural systems, emergency response and the underwater industry.”

While the main purpose of the hearing is to “clarify the facts surrounding the incident,” panel chairman Jason Neubauer acknowledged on Monday that the panel also faces the task of finding “any misconduct or negligence by appropriately authorized mariners.”