Global Courant
The OceanGate Expeditions submarine ship Titan goes missing with five people on board. (FATHER)
The cramped submarine that went missing on a trip to the Titanic shipwreck has an onboard toilet and is operated with a “PlayStation” controller.
Rescue workers are in a race against time to locate the submarine Titan, operated by OceanGate Expeditions, which was reported missing Sunday evening in the mid-Atlantic about 700 kilometers south of St John’s, Newfoundland, Canada.
Five people are aboard the small craft, which lost contact about an hour and 45 minutes after diving towards the wreck.
Among those on board are British billionaire Hamish Harding, 58, and British-based Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son, Suleman, 19.
French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, who works for OceanGate, would also be on board, as would OceanGate founder and CEO Stockton Rush.
In the submarine Titan
OceanGate Expeditions charges individuals $250,000 (£195,000) for an eight-day trip, which includes a dive to the Titanic wreck.
That reports the OceanGate websitethe submarine is made of carbon fiber and titanium, weighs more than 10,000 kg and can reach a depth of 4,100 feet.
A video posted to YouTube by OceanGate gives an idea of just how cramped it is inside the submersible.
The Titan submarine is equipped with its own toilet. (CBC)
OceanGate founder Stockton Rush, who is aboard the missing Titan submarine, shows off his features. (CBC)
There are no seats in the Titan submarine. (FATHER)
There is room for five people – a pilot and four crew members – but there are no seats and passengers must sit close together.
The Titan is 670 cm long, 280 cm wide and 250 cm high and can reach a speed of 3 knots.
There is enough emergency oxygen on board for 96 hours.
Watch: Inside the missing submarine that went missing on the Titanic voyage
Titan is the only deep-diving submarine with a toilet. Similar to a camping toilet, this is accessible in the front dome and comes with a privacy screen.
There are three screens in the submarine, one for controls, one for sonar and one for visuals. The inside of the sub has only one power button on the inner wall, while the craft is controlled by a device that resembles a Sony PlayStation controller.
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OceanGate founder Stockton Rush, who is aboard the missing submarine, explained how it works in an episode of the BBC’s The Travel Show last year.
The characteristics of the missing Titan submarine. (FATHER)
Conditions in the Titan submarine are cramped. (Ocean Gate)
“I like to tell people this isn’t your grandfather’s submarine,” he said.
The Logitech controller used to control the Titan submarine. (CBC)
“It has one button and that’s it. We control the sub with this game controller. It’s made by Logitech, but it’s actually a Sony PlayStation-like controller.
“If you want to move forward, push forward. If you want to go back, push back. If you want to turn left, so be it, if you want to turn right, turn right.”
How does it work?
According to OceanGate, the submarine is “a combination of breakthrough engineering and turnkey technology.”
Dr. Robert Blasiak, an ocean researcher at the Stockholm Resilience Center at Stockholm University, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “This submarine is designed to go down to certain depths. And this Titan submarine can go down to a certain depth according to its specifications. depth of 4,000 meters.
“The Titanic rests on the seabed at a depth of about 3,800 meters, so it is within specifications.
The submarine Titan, pictured from its landing platform. (OceanGate, Alamy)
The submarine Titan, depicted on the surface in this file photo. (FATHER)
“But we have to understand that the forces in that part of the ocean are hard to even wrap your head around. It’s about 380 atmospheres of pressure, so 380 times the pressure you feel on the surface when you walk around. That’s about 200 times the pressure of a car tire, so imagine that all around you, which is why you need a submarine with very thick walls.’
In the FAQ section of its website on May 30, OceanGate said the Titan communicates with the surface crew via text messages sent through a USBL (ultra-short baseline) acoustic system.
The view for passengers aboard the submarine Titan. (Ocean Gate)
The OceanGate submarine Titan went missing on Sunday evening. (Alamy, OceanGate)
It said the submarine should communicate with those on the surface every 15 minutes or more often if necessary.
The same system is used to track the submarine’s position.
Anyone who pays the $250,000 fee to board the Titan becomes a “mission specialist” and must collect data during the expedition.
The website states, “You don’t need any previous maritime experience or specific skills to join. It’s helpful to have a solid pair of sea legs!”
– Everything we know so far about the missing Titan submarine (Evening Standard, 4 minutes)
Watch: Search for submersible tourist vessel near the wreck of the Titanic
