The Titanic, which sank on April 15, 1912, is undoubtedly the most famous shipwreck of all time. Since scientists discovered the wreck in 1985, researchers have searched for it in hopes of learning more about the luxury ship and its sinking. But there are some problems with trying to examine a shipwreck. So they are usually underwater. It’s unbelievably obvious – so much so that it may seem like we definitely needed a workaround much sooner – but it’s not an easy fix.

Water, especially turbid water 12,500 feet deep on the ocean floor, distorts the light. This distorts the image and makes everything around the sunken Titanic incredibly dark. While people could photograph, videotape, and illuminate sections with important detail, there was no way to see them all at once in high resolution.

Now. Researchers have published the first full-scale digital scan of the Titanic; this allows us to see the entire ship at once, as if there was no water – or at least the part that is not buried deep. Known as the “digital stunt”, this is a full 3D visualization that covers the inside and outside of the ship, capturing many aspects of the wreck in unprecedented detail.

Titanic analyst Parks Stevenson said in the article: BBC newsHe said the model was “one of the first serious steps in the history of the Titanic towards science-based research rather than speculation.”

Two remote-controlled ships named Romeo and Juliet (not Jack and Rose, unfortunately) now spent more than 200 hours scanning every inch of wreckage, covering both halves of the separated ship and the surrounding wreckage area. They took over 700,000 images, which they then combined to create this revolutionary 3D model.

The dredging was done by the deep-sea mapping company Magellan Ltd. and Atlantic Productions, which produced a documentary about the Titanic dredging process. Using technology that has been in development for five years, “the exact condition of the shipwreck has been revealed and the entire historic site has been mapped, providing a level of detail never seen before,” according to a press release from Atlantic Productions.

The never-before-seen level of detail is no exaggeration either. The scans are in high resolution enough that you can see things like individual shoes, unopened champagne bottles, and the serial number on the propeller.

The digital copy not only gives researchers a clear view to examine the wreckage, but also preserves a copy of the site in its current form. The underwater environment is very good at destroying shipwrecks, and while we still have time with the Titanic, it won’t last forever. At least some of the information currently stored will be lost over time. But now, even if these details are gone from the real world, they will be safe to scan for further study.

The Titanic remains a goldmine for historians, and this scan is the next step in unlocking even more knowledge and understanding.