November 15, 2007
Moonlighting: Clive Cussler
The bestselling novelist talks about his other passion in life: searching for shipwrecks with his organization, NUMA.
from the November 09, 2007 edition - http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1109/p14s05-algn.html
I was in the service and stationed out in the Pacific during the Korean War. I got really into diving. [In 1951], a friend and I sent for a tank and regulator and the only place, then, you could buy it from was through [Jacques] Cousteau in France. Everybody laughed and said, "It has to be the first tank and regulator – Scuba – in the Pacific." So that's where it all started with me.
It wasn't until much later that I got interested in searching for shipwrecks. We found an old anchor off Catalina Island years ago. My buddies and I raised it and it's sitting now in a little maritime museum at Cabrillo Beach [Calif.]. That got me interested in shipwrecks. The first big expedition I funded was for the Bonhomme Richard, the John Paul Jones ship in the North Sea off Scarborough, England. We didn't find it and I've looked six times since then and haven't found it yet but I'm going to give up. Shipwrecks are never found until they want to be found. And when they are found, they're never where they're supposed to be.
Back in 1979, when we were looking for the Richard, there was an attorney on board from Texas who said, "You know, if you're going to do this, you should form a nonprofit foundation." So they said, "We'll call it the Clive Cussler Foundation." I said, "No, no, no. I've got an ego, but it's not that big." So then they thought it would be great fun to call it NUMA [The National Underwater and Marine Agency] out of [my] books. For a few years, I failed pretty miserably and then we kind of got the hang of it. We've failed more often than not, but we've had some pretty good successes, like the Confederate submarine Hunley, which we raised, and then the Carpathia [the ship that rescued survivors of the Titanic] was a favorite. You know, they made such a big deal about [Robert] Ballard and the Titanic, and [James] Cameron and the movie, so I thought, "what about the Carpathia?" I researched it and found out it had been torpedoed off Ireland in World War I. So it took us three attempts before the crew found it. And the Marie Celeste, the famous ghost ship, and others like that. Everyone thinks NUMA is in a big building with employees but it's just me sitting here at the desk when I do research on a wreck and figure there's a fighting chance to find it. Then I call a crew that handles the equipment ... and we start searching. My son [Dirk] is president, he handles a lot of the details for me. I'm going to Panama in February to search for a ship called the Roosevelt. It was the ship that Admiral [Robert] Peary used in his North Pole expeditions. It sailed for, oh, another 30 years and it was too far gone to do any repair. They just ran it into a swamp where the French were working on the canal, so it's down there somewhere. Someone jokingly said, "Why don't you find a shipwreck in Arizona, in the desert?" So, just for fun, I found out that a ship called the Uncle Sam, a tugboat they brought down from San Francisco – it was the first steamboat on the Colorado river – sank three years later. So that's always been one that, some day, I'd like to go search for.
I was always a Civil War buff. When my parents went to town on a Saturday night, they would always leave me at the library. And I got hooked on a boys series about the Civil War by two brothers – one was a Confederate and the other was a Yankee. That perked my interest and then I started reading books on the Civil War. I then concentrated on the maritime end of it. We found three Confederate Ironclads. We found three Confederate Union Ironclads in Charleston, [N.C.], and then The Cumberland, which the Merrimac sank, we found that. The Hunley, it turned out, wasn't on its way back to the shore when it went down. It didn't go down in an explosion. They were sitting there waiting for the tide to turn. It looks as if they were struck by a ship coming to save the Housatonic survivors [The Hunley sank the USS Housatonic by torpedo]. If we find something I just make an announcement and we do an archaeological report and we just move on to the next one. I've never made a big thing of it. My accountant thinks I belong in a rubber room under restraint because there's no profit in this, and we've never kept an artifact, and I've never looked for treasure. It's a fascinating pastime and I figure, at the most, every once in a while in a history book, I'll be a footnote.
• Clive Cussler's 'The Chase' is now in stores. Read about the National Underwater and Marine Agency [NUMA] at www.numa.net
Posted by victoria at 09:42 AM
July 31, 2006
SEA HUNTERS - ANNOUNCEMENT
Hello Divemedic2 and all of our Shipwreck Central Community,
The rumour you heard is absolutely true. After nearly six years of production the “Sea Hunters” Television series is complete. There are now 7 brand new shows airing on History Television, and National Geographic Canada. The new shows start airing on National Geographic International, the UK and Australia as well as on many other independent stations around the globe on August 05, 2006, but production for television is now complete.
Television executives are not shipwreck hunters. Their job is to sell products like soap or cars and other things by placing ads between their shows. We, at Shipwreck Central and Eco-Nova Productions, are Shipwreck Hunters and we’ve been planning for this event for over two years.
Our “Membership Site” is designed to provide “Shipwreck Central Members” the opportunity to join in the search for shipwrecks around the world while also providing many other exclusive privileges to any of our thousands of “Sea Hunters” fans around the world who decide to take a membership.
Each new membership comes with exclusive advantages:
1. 4-hour long, DVDs each year of membership, showing never before released, behind the scenes, footage of our shipwreck searches and many other shipwreck vignettes that have never been seen. These DVDs retail for $39.99 each so becoming a member starts you off saving money.
2. Members have exclusive access to our 100’s of hours of online “Shipwreck Central” Media in our member’s Library
3. Members have the chance to have a lunch with Clive Cussler, Mike Fletcher and John Davis
4. Members have the change to own brand new DOXA Sub 750 watches
5. Members will have the chance to join the Sea Hunters on a dive expedition
6. The first 1,000 members receive a “Vessel Research Team” “Charter Member” Cap
But most importantly, each member becomes a part of a truly interactive, global community that can, by working together on the World Wide Web, choose target shipwrecks and launch expeditions to find and film them. Once we reach 2,000 memberships we will launch our first expedition. Together with the Shipwreck Central team, Members will help choose the shipwreck targets. We will then deploy the “Sea Hunters” expedition team and the filming will begin. Each expedition, each wreck site will be filmed and broadcast directly to subscribers over the Internet. We will share all of the action and exciting underwater images with every member of our newly formed Vessel Research Team via our broadband connections. Each expedition will also provide a chance for one or more of our members to join the expedition team, but it won’t be a vacation. Each member going on an expedition will be provided a video camera and will be tasked with doing a daily video “Blog” that keeps every subscriber abreast of the action every day of the expedition.
You have all watched as “ShipwreckCentral.com” has grown and changed, continuously increasing the ability to send high quality video directly to your home computers, or if you’re set up, directly to your TV screen. You’ve seen the growth of our community discussions and you’ve watched as we’ve uploaded video clip after video clip from our dive expeditions directly to you via the Internet. All of this activity has had one goal: to develop the skills that are required to support a real, active, worldwide community of people who share a love of shipwrecks and maritime history and who understand and want to share the dramatic tales and historic stories that lay hidden in shipwreck sites around the world.
We have been planning for years for the end of the television series. The Internet, the Shipwreck Central Member’s site, and our ability to stream high quality video directly to each of you means that the series can and will continue and that we can add a whole new range of interactions that allows us, not only to continue searching for, and filming shipwrecks, but to do our work together, as a worldwide community. If you were a member today you could see the three, very interesting shipwreck sites that we are now considering for “Target number One” and you could suggest “Targets of your own” for the members to consider.
Our goal is really simple, we want to attract members who are truly committed to searching for and finding shipwrecks and who want to play an active role in the process. Our first shipwreck expedition starts as soon as we have our first 2,000 Vessel Research Team memberships (We project Fall of 2006 as the start date for our first Internet expedition and Broadcast). We will do our own research, finding, filming, and broadcasting of our own footage directly back to each of our members. We will operate our own, fully interactive, Shipwreck Search, subscription television service and we’ll broadcast direct to your home computer via the Internet. We’ve spent over 30 months planning, designing and getting ready and we know it can be done. We will become a worldwide shipwreck community, working to research, search for, find and film and preserve historic shipwrecks. As we move forward we will define new ways for television and our Internet linked computers to allow us to have genuine access and to make a positive impact in the real world. In doing so, Shipwreck Central’s Vessel Research Team members, will grow as a dynamic and positive force for the preservation of our common maritime history and we’re going to have a blast while we do it. So, Please take a moment to look over the membership information pages and then sign up and let’s go search for some history. It’s the World Wide Web, not television that is the new home for active minds and for people who want to make a real connection for real adventure in the real world…. We’ll never have a more rewarding adventure…. Join the “Vessel Research Team”. Become a “Shipwreck Central” member today at let’s continue the search.
All the Best,
John Davis
Sea Hunter, Producer, President
Eco-Nova Productions Limited
The Sea Hunters television series
Shipwreck Central Television
Posted by victoria at 12:09 PM
April 11, 2006
Today on History Television
If you have the afternoon free why not check out The Search for "Tonquin" and "Isabella"
Airing Tuesday, April 11 at 3:00 PM EST (CC) on History Television.
Posted by victoria at 07:10 AM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2006
Second Chance to See Force Z
In case you missed the first airing History Television will be playing Force Z - Friday, March 31 at 2:00 & 8:00 PM EST (CC)
Watch a preview of Force Z Right Now!
Posted by victoria at 09:01 AM | Comments (0)
March 14, 2006
USS Mississinewa
Classic Sea Hunters
Human Torpedoes: The Wreck of USS Mississinewa- Sunday on History Television
On the Ulithi Atoll, South of Guam lays the wreckage of the USS Mississinewa, a fuel carrying cargo vessel. She was sunk on November 20, 1944 and carries the distinction of being the only vessel confirmed to have been sunk by a Japanese torpedo manned by a Kamikaze pilot who steered the torpedo, a “Kaiten” or “heaven Shaker” to its target and to his own death. Next to the wreckage of the Mississinewa lays a cylindrical object, which could only be the only “suicide torpedo” ever located in the field of battle. Sea Hunter James Delgado, one of the few scholars to study these unique craft, journeys to the Ulithi Atoll to determine just what lies on the bottom and what really happened to the “Mississinewa”.
Posted by victoria at 07:19 AM
February 21, 2006
Force Z - This Friday on History Television
HMS Prince of Wales, a 35,000-ton King George V class battleship built in Birkenhead, England, was completed in 1941. In late May, she was sent into action with the German battleship Bismarck and received significant damage from heavy gunfire. Following repairs, Prince of Wales carried Prime Minister Winston Churchill across the Atlantic to Newfoundland. There, on 9-12 August, Churchill joined U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt for the Atlantic Charter conference, the first meeting between the two English-speaking leaders of what was emerging as the "Grand Alliance" against the Axis powers.
Following her return to British waters, Prince of Wales went to the Mediterranean, where she successfully engaged Italian planes off Malta in late September. Sent to the Far East with the battle cruiser HMS Repulse to counter the swiftly developing Japanese threat in the region, she arrived on 2 December 1941. On 8 December, the day of the Pearl Harbor raid on the other side of the International Date Line, the Japanese landed in northern Malaya. Prince of Wales, Repulse and four destroyers were sent to attack the invasion force. After finding no targets, the British ships were returning to Singapore when, late in the morning of 10 December, they were attacked by a strong force of Japanese high-level bombers and torpedo planes. With no friendly planes to protect them, both heavy ships were hit several times. Repulse sank at about 1230. Prince of Wales capsized and followed her to the bottom less than an hour later.
Their loss further shocked a naval world already stunned by the events at Pearl Harbor only a few days earlier. The sinking of the Prince of Wales and Repulse sent shock waves through the British Admiralty in the same way Pearl Harbor totally disrupted Washington. Inexpensive little planes with cheap little torpedoes where taking out capital ships with near total impunity. The rules of naval warfare were being rewritten and aircraft and carriers were moving to the forefront.
Join the Sea Hunters as they dive the pristine wrecks of two giant warships - HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse - two proud warriors whose sinking changed naval warfare forever.
Posted by victoria at 07:42 AM
February 05, 2006
Upcoming Episodes on History Television
Sunk at Robinson Crusoe Isl airs Monday, February 6 at 4:00 PM EST
Lost at Sea: Akron and Macon airs Tuesday, February 7 at 8:00 AM & 4:00 PM EST
Arctic Legacy of Franklin airs Wednesday, February 8 at 8:00 AM & 4:00 PM EST
The Search for the Avro Arrow Rocket Flight Models airs Thursday, February 9 at 8:00 AM & 4:00 PM EST
The Search for the Early Submarines airs Friday, February 10 at 8:00 AM & 4:00 PM EST
NEW Russalka, the Czar's Lost Ironclad airs Friday, February 10 at 2:00 PM EST & 8:00 PM EST
NEW Russalka, the Czar's Lost Ironclad airs Saturday, February 11 at 12:00 AM EST
Posted by victoria at 09:05 AM
January 03, 2006
This Friday on History Television
One year ago the Sea Hunters set out for the Straits of Magellan and their first dive of 2005. Join us this Friday on History Television for The Search for HMS Doterel: January 6 at 2:00 PM EST (CC)
For detailed information about the search check out the Live Dive archives under Doterel.
Posted by victoria at 11:33 AM
November 29, 2005
Guess the Sea Hunter- Clue 2
We have had some guesses but before the big reveal I thought I would give you one more picture. This one is about 5 years later than the first.
Now do you know?
Posted by victoria at 12:23 PM
November 25, 2005
Guess the Sea Hunter
During my vast and detailed search into the Secret Lives of the Sea Hunters I came across the image below. Do you know who it is? If you have a guess post it in the forum.
p.s. I know who it is.
Posted by victoria at 12:52 PM
October 25, 2005
Tour Turkish the Naval Museum
Mike and Jim tour the Naval Museum in Turkey.
Posted by victoria at 09:38 AM
September 28, 2005
Lunch with the Sea Hunters
Warren is in Homeport right now because the Team is heading down to Shelburne to do a little more diving for Season 5. Today I had lunch with Warren, Mike, Chris, and Paul Grantham, another diver. They talked about dry suits, weight belts, and made a list of things they need to pick up for the dive. There was also mention of the tides and the weather. It was great! I had my camera so I snapped a couple of pictures.
Have a great day!
Posted by victoria at 12:13 PM
September 22, 2005
We've Only just Begun
Well, we made it through another season of filming with no major problems. It was a big year for our team. We made the switch to HD for our special on the Project Habbakuk. Except for passing by the big screens at the Sony Store I had never seen anything in HD but let me say WOW what a difference. Watching something in HD is better than looking out a newly washed window. It’s especially great for documentaries; you really get lost in the reality of what you are seeing because the image is so richly detailed and crisp.
We traveled to some amazing locations. The Straits of Magellan via Chile to dive the Doterel; the clear blue waters off the Florida Keys to dive the Canada; the South Pacific off Singapore for The Prince of Wales and the Repulse; the hidden lakes of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains for Project Habbakuk; the famous George’s Bank for the Alexander Macomb; the ever changing Estonia for the strangely placed Russalka; and to the Dardanelles at Turkey for the Triumph and Goliath.
The distance around the earth, at 23.5 degrees north, is 36,750 kilometers. Our team traveled an estimated 54026.72 kilometers, one way, times 8 or more people on some trips. This doesn’t include travel by horse, canoe, helicopter, laurie, zodiac, boat, or underwater scooter.
The work is far from complete. Chris (from Shipwreck Central) has been locked away in our editing suite for weeks getting the shows pieced together with the rest of our post-production team. Sadly Chris had lost his tan from his days spent on the deck of MV Grace; and as summer ends tonight at 6:23 PM EDT, I don’t think he will be getting it back.
While Chris is in seclusion he will be getting us new clips to post on Live Dive for your viewing pleasure, and our SWC editor has being searching our archives for some amazing footage captured over the last decade to fill the Members Library. I am so excited to launch our members section so you all can watch Clive and the team as you have never seen them.
So enjoy the last hours of summer and don’t worry we have much to post over the next few months as we prepare for season 6 and some more amazing Shipwrecks!
Posted by victoria at 07:11 AM
September 01, 2005
Answers from Clive Cussler
When the team returns from Turkey they will be heading to the South West to meet with Clive Cussler. If you have any questions for Clive post them in the forum (The Sea Hunter/Clive Cussler), and Mike will film the answers later this month.
Thanks,
Victoria
Posted by victoria at 09:57 AM
August 12, 2005
Tonight on History Television
One of my favorite episodes from this season airs tonight on History Television Canada. I always enjoy seeing Clive Cussler on an expedition.
The Search for Bonhomme Richard
Join The Sea Hunters as they search the cold waters of the North Sea for the United States Navy’s most famous vessel, Captain John Paul Jones’ “Bonhomme Richard.” Using the latest in side scan sonar and magnetometer search equipment and working from tide charts and drift patterns developed by Dr. Clive Cussler, The Sea Hunters will search the North Sea for America’s most famous shipwreck.
Airing Friday, August 12 at 10 pm EST on History Television. Check local listings!
Posted by victoria at 07:32 AM
August 05, 2005
Read the Blog-Watch the Show
The team just came back from one of their most challenging expeditions to date. The Alexander Macomb is a tough Liberty Ship to get a look at, on the bottom of the North Atlantic, on George’s Bank.
Get a look at the final days of her nemesis German U-boat U-215 tonight on History Television. For more information on our search for the Alexander Macomb read the blog entries below.
Still on Patrol - The Hunt for Hitler's U-boat 215
Airing tonight on History Television at 8 pm EST
In July of 1942 the German U-Boat 215, Commanded by Kptlt. Frtiz Hoekner, was on the secret mission to North America. U-215 was a very rare class of u-boat, a type VIID. In total there was only 6 of this type of vessel built.
Also in this episode is our good friend Vince Capone. Vince has a master's degree in Marine Science and over 25 years experience working and diving in the marine environment. Vince has also been a special sonar instructor for the US Army Corps of Engineers, US EPA, US Navy, Korean Navy, Irish Navy as well as a special consultant to Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Check out his web site www.BlackLaserLearning.com
Posted by victoria at 02:10 PM
August 04, 2005
Arctic Legacy of Franklin
We saw Tropical Storm Franklin last week; tune in tonught on National Geographic Channel Canada for a classic episode The Wreck of the Fox: The Arctic Legacy of Franklin. Airing Thursday, August 4 at 10pm EST. Check you local listings!
The Franklin Expedition is the Canadian Arctic’s greatest tragedy. The search for Franklin survivors was one of the largest and longest in naval history. Despairing at what she considered to be inaction by the British Admiralty, Lady Jane Franklin dispatched the yacht “Fox” under the command of Captain Francis Leopold McClintock, to search the Arctic for signs of her husband. He arrived in the Arctic in 1858 and began an expensive search, which greatly enlarged the available information on the fate of Franklin and his men.
Posted by victoria at 12:16 PM
June 28, 2005
What to Watch
If you missed any of this seasons episodes of The Sea Hunter do not worry. Our good friends at National Geographic Canada continue to play new show along with the classics.
Tonight, from this season, The Search for the Avro Arrow Flight Models:
Join “The Sea Hunters” as they dive under the cold waters of Lake Ontario, at the Picton Test Site, and off the coast of Maryland, at the American C.I.A. Headquarters at Wallop’s Island, and search for exact replicas, reduced in size, of a plane that was the fastest fighter of its day. Launched by Nike Missiles, these models were propelled at supersonic speeds for test purposes and never recovered. Working with the National Aeronautics Museum in Canada, and the Chief Historian for the U.S. Coast Guard in the United States “The Sea Hunters” will dive both sites and search for the last remnants of the fastest plane that was never built and in the process tell a story of espionage, subterfuge and assassination that starts under the cold waters of the Atlantic and Great Lakes and moves to Bermuda, South Africa, Holland and Iraq.
Airing Tuesday, June 28, 2005 on National Geographic Canada at 10 pm EST. Check local listings!
Posted by victoria at 10:34 AM | Comments (0)
May 05, 2005
While you're waiting for our flight to leave.....
The pre-trip prep activities are starting to taper off. It ought to start getting exciting tomorrow afternoon and Saturday (that's when the flight leaves). I'll fill you in on the itineray late tomorrow, some details are still up in the air.
In the meantime, tonight on National Geographic Cananda catch a classic Sea Hunters episode:
Catherine the Great's Treasure Ship- Vrouw Maria
Under Catherine the Great the Russian court became a centre for European culture and the Vrouw Maria was a part of this. She was sailing from Amsterdam to St.Petersburg with a cargo of fairly ordinary merchandise when she encountered a storm off the Finnish coast. Her captain and crew escaped with their lives to a nearby islet and over the next few days proceeded to salvage much of her more mundane cargo. However, the captain and crew were unaware of the valuable treasure trove contained deep within her cargo holds. Her incredible art collection had been a closely guarded secret. Soon, another storm raged over the area and Vrouw Maria was now irretrievably lost to the depths.
The Empress issued orders for salvage attempts but the ship was never found and the story of her riches remained dormant until the 1980's when diplomatic records were discovered by a Finnish historian.
Join the Sea Hunters as they travel to the Baltic Sea, and become the first foreign cinematographers to join the Finnish National Maritime Museum's underwater archaeologists, in confirming the identity of this vast treasure ship and filming the process of excavation and preservation.
Airing Tonight at 10:00 pm EST on National Geographic Canada. Check local listings.
Posted by victoria at 11:24 AM | Comments (0)
April 29, 2005
Weekend Plans
Get ready because next week the Sea Hunters will leave for Singapore to dive the HMS Prince of Wales & HMS Repulse. Live from the Dive will be kicked up into full gear as we report back the activies of our world famous dive team.
In the mean time we have a classic episode on National Geographic Canada tonight and an episode from this season on History Television on Sunday.
Runners and Raiders
Tonight at 10:00 pm EST on National Geographic Canada Check Local Listings!
Two blockade-runners rest in the warm, clear waters off Bermuda. Largely intact, these two wrecks offer unique insights into these highly specialized ships, and into the very nature of Bermuda's involvement in the American Civil War.
Now join us as we visit the last resting places of two blockade-runners and one of the most famous Confederate raiders in history, the CSS Alabama.
The Search for Bonhomme Richard
Sunday at 6:00 pm EST on History Television Check Local Listings!
Join “The Sea Hunters” as they search the cold waters of the North Sea for the United States Navy’s most famous vessel, Captain John Paul Jones’ “Bonhomme Richard.” Using the latest in side scan sonar and magnetometer search equipment and working from tide charts and drift patterns developed by Dr. Clive Cussler, “The Sea Hunters” will search the North Sea for America’s most famous shipwreck.
Posted by victoria at 02:59 PM | Comments (1)
April 26, 2005
Classic Episode: The Steamship Atlantic
Tonight at 10:00 pm EST on National Geographic Canada Check Local Listings!
The SS Atlantic was found by our very own, Mike Fletcher!
At the base of the Great Lakes, near the center of Lake Erie, the sinking of the steamer Atlantic attracted international attention. She tragically sank in the center of Lake Erie not far from a small town, Port Dover, in Ontario, Canada. In 1853, an obscure inventor, Lodner Philips, brought a submarine to the site. Evidence suggests that the early sub was lost diving and never recovered. This submarine, in addition to the treasures of Atlantic creates one of the richest maritime heritage sites in North America. Join the Sea Hunters as they search for what could be one of the world's oldest existing submarines lost on the wrecksite of an early immigrant ship the grand paddle wheel steamer Atlantic.
Posted by victoria at 03:50 PM | Comments (0)
April 25, 2005
The Princess Sophia Tragedy
Airing tonight April 25, 2005 at 10:00 pm on National Geographic Canada
Check local listings!
Near the center of The Lynn Canal - just off the coast of Juneau, Alaska - a team of shipwreck hunters employ the latest sophisticated equipment to uncover the story of the most tragic shipwreck of the Pacific Northwest: the Princess Sophia. Join the Sea Hunters as they explore the final resting place of one of North America's most controversial sinkings: the Princess Sophia.
Posted by victoria at 03:29 PM | Comments (0)
April 22, 2005
Producer John Davis Offers Tales from the Deep
Our fearless leader, John Davis, will be the Guest Speaker at a luncheon on Wednesday, May 18, in our home port, Halifax, Nova Scotia; as part of the 8th International Conference - Remote Sensing for Marine and Coastal Environments.
This luncheon is included as part of the full or Wednesday daily registration package. Additional tickets can be purchased during online registration. If you are in the area be sure and check him out.
About the speaker:
John Davis. Teacher, fisherman, writer, diver - John Davis arrived with a varied background when he entered the entertainment industry over 10 years ago. Today he is an integral part of the Canadian documentary television community. As Co-founder and producer at Eco-Nova Productions Limited, he oversaw the creation of "Oceans of Mystery", an underwater shipwreck series which airs on the Discovery Channel and the Outdoor Life Network.
Currently, John Davis is owner and President of Eco-Nova Productions Limited. The Sea Hunters television series chronicles John and the Eco-Nova dive team searching for and documenting famous shipwrecks around the world from Alaska to Micronesia. The team has found the wreck of the Carpathia, the ship that rescued the Titanic survivors in 1912. They have also filmed the wreck of the CSS Hunley, the first submarine to sink a ship in combat. Other recent "Sea Hunter" finds include; U-21, a WW1 German U-Boat, "Mary Celeste", the famous Nova Scotian ghost ship and U-215, a WWII German U-Boat.
The Sea Hunters series currently airs on History Television and National Geographic television. The series is broadcast in 26 languages in over 150 countries.
Posted by victoria at 02:13 PM | Comments (0)
April 19, 2005
Still on Patrol - The Hunt for Hitler's U-boat 215
Airing tonight: Tuesday, April 19 at 10:00 pm EST Check local listings!
In July of 1942 the German U-Boat 215, Commanded by Kptlt. Frtiz Hoekner, was on the secret mission to North America. U-215 was a very rare class of u-boat, a type VIID. In total there was only 6 of this type of vessel built. The uniqueness of this design was in the addition of a thirty-two foot compartment between the control room and the galley that housed five vertical mine tubes. Each tube held five SMA (magnetic influence) mines. The addition of these mine tubes allowed the U-Boat Command to assign dual purpose missions to these boats, that of mining enemy harbors and anchorages and the traditional attack role of torpedoing enemy shipping. Kptlt. Hoekner’s secret mission was to mine the entrance of Boston Harbor and create havoc as convoys started their long journey across the Atlantic. He would never accomplish this task. The torpedo he sent into the hull of the Liberty Ship USS “Alexander Macomb” would seal his fate and the fate of his crew long before he reached his destination.
The “Alexander Macomb” was built in Baltimore, Maryland. She was launched on May 6th, 1942. On July 3rd of that year, she was lagging behind her convoy in dense fog. She was six miles back when U-215 fired her torpedoes. Thirty men of her sixty-man crew were killed or wounded in the blast. She sank minutes after the secondary explosions in her cargo hold opened her hull to the waters of the cold North Atlantic.
Minutes after the torpedoes hit the “Macomb,” the convoy escort vessel “Le Tiger” took up the chase for the U-boat. Using ASDEC (a primitive form of sonar) they located the sub as she ran for deeper water. Dropping depth charges at close intervals the “Le Tiger” first slowed her target, then the pings from the ASDEC indicated the target had come to a complete stop on the bottom. Oil and debris on the surface indicated a kill. The “Le Tiger” then went to the aid of the “Macomb” survivors.
Using targets provided by fishermen and multi-beam charting done by the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, the “Sea Hunters” will search for and dive these wrecks, confirming the kill of the U-215, and telling the story of the loss of the “Macomb” and the Nazi plans to mine Boston Harbor.
Posted by victoria at 03:19 PM | Comments (0)
April 18, 2005
Tonight on National Geographic Canada
The Search for "Tonquin" and "Isabella"
Airing: Apr 18 at 10:00 PM EST. Check Local Listings!
Using the research vessel from the University of British Columbia, “The Sea Hunters” will search the waters of Templar channel near Tofino and with side scan sonar, sub-bottom profiler and dredging equipment make a careful survey of the site. These dives will tell for certain whether this notorious vessel has indeed been found. If it is “Tonquin” it will be the earliest wreck ever located on North America’s West coast. Comparative dives will also take place on other early fur trade vessels in the Columbia River and in English Bay. This is a great “Sea Hunters” detective story solving a mystery concerning one of the most controversial wrecks in North American history.
Posted by victoria at 08:57 AM | Comments (0)
April 15, 2005
What's on This Weekend
No need to go out this weekend there are two great Sea Hunters episodes for you to watch:
Friday on National Geographic Canada-
The Wreck of Arturo Prat's "Esmeralda"
Airing: Apr 15 at 10:00 PM EST. Check Local Listings!
The Sea Hunters are invited to Chile to assist the German government archaeologists in the retrieval of artifacts from the German light cruiser “Dresden” which was lost during WWI off Robinson Crusoe Island in Chilean waters. While there, the team are asked to assist the Japanese Imperial Navy and to dive and film the wreck site of Chile’s most famous naval vessel, Esmeralda.
Sunday on History Television-
The Search for "Tonquin" and "Isabella"
Airing: Apr 17 at 6:00 PM EST. Check Local Listings!
Using the research vessel from the University of British Columbia, “The Sea Hunters” will search the waters of Templar channel near Tofino and with side scan sonar, sub-bottom profiler and dredging equipment make a careful survey of the site. These dives will tell for certain whether this notorious vessel has indeed been found. If it is “Tonquin” it will be the earliest wreck ever located on North America’s West coast. Comparative dives will also take place on other early fur trade vessels in the Columbia River and in English Bay. This is a great “Sea Hunters” detective story solving a mystery concerning one of the most controversial wrecks in North American history.
Posted by victoria at 12:49 PM | Comments (0)
April 12, 2005
National Geographic Canada: Airing New Season
Looking to watch this season of The Sea Hunters on National Geographic Channel Canada; Now is your chance!
The Search for the Avro Arrow Rocket Flight Models
Join The Sea Hunters as they dive under the cold waters of Lake Ontario, at the Pickering Test Site, and off the coast of Maryland, at the American C.I.A. Headquarters at Wallop’s Island, in search for the last remnants of the fastest plane that was never built. Uncover a story of espionage, subterfuge and assassination that starts under the cold waters of the Atlantic and Great Lakes and moves to Bermuda, South Africa, Holland and Iraq.
Airing April 13 at 10:00:00 PM EST. Check local listings
Posted by victoria at 03:48 PM | Comments (0)
April 11, 2005
Germany Marks 60th Anniversary of Buchenwald Liberation
In December 2002 the Sea Hunters were invitied to dive the remains of Mittelbau-Dora a Nazi forced labour camp from WWII, where prisoners built rockets for Hitler's war machine.
In October 1944, Dora and other sub-camps originally belonging to the Buchenwald complex were amalgamated to form the independent Mittelbau-Dora Concentration Camp, in which Dora now served as the parent camp.
On April 11, 1945 the Buchenwald Concentration Camp was liberated. Although the overall number of deaths cannot be precisely determined, about 12,000 were officially registered in the SS files.
Today we invite you to remember what happen at Buchenwald/Mittelbau-Dora. Please take some time to explore the web site for the Memorial Foundation, and take a moment to find Mittelbau-Dora on our interactive map to witness the historic dive made by the Sea Hunters.
"Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it."
George Santayana
Posted by victoria at 08:21 AM | Comments (0)
April 07, 2005
Episode: The Wreck of Arturo Prat's "Esmeralda"
Airing on History Television Sunday, April 10 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
When the Japanese Imperial Navy wanted an example of proper action for officers under fire in a naval engagement they chose the Chilean naval vessel “Esmeralda” and her captain, Arturo Prat, as the model to be studied by all officers graduating from the Japanese Naval Academy.
Mike Fletcher and “The Sea Hunters” team are invited back to Chile in order to assist German government archaeologists in the retrieval of artifacts from the German light cruiser “Dresden” which was lost during WWI off Robinson Crusoe Island in Chilean waters. During the trip the team is invited, by the Chilean Embassy, to dive and film the wreck site of Chile’s most famous naval vessel “Esmeralda”. After leaving Robinson Crusoe Island, the team, along with Chilean navy divers, travel over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) North to the site of the Battle of Iquique to search for the final resting place of “Esmeralda”. The first dive shows that the wreckage presents a vivid illustration of the horror of that battle. The broken hull of “Esmeralda,” her cannons lying quiet on the ocean floor and the skeletal remains of many of her brave crew all tell a graphic tale of the of the horror of battle and the cost of war.
For more information on the Esmeralda find her Vessel Profile on the Interactive Map
Posted by victoria at 11:43 AM | Comments (0)
March 30, 2005
The Search for the Early Submarines
If you miss this episode the first time it aired don't let it happen again.
Airing on History Television Sunday, April 3 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
The Irish Republican Brotherhood, commonly known as "Fenians", was an Irish revolutionary secret society, founded in the United States by John O'Mahony in 1858. O'Mahony, who was a Celtic scholar, named his organization after the Fianna, the legendary band of Irish warriors led by Fionn mac Cumhail.
The submarine Fenian Ram was designed by John Philip Holland for use by the Fenian Brotherhood against the British. The Ram's construction and launching in 1881 by the Delamater Iron Company in New York was funded by the Fenians' Skirmishing Fund.
The “Sea Hunters”, working with Dr. Pete Capelloti, Chief Historian, U.S. Coast Guard, gained permission to side scan and dive on the South end of Manhattan Island, between the Whitestone and Throg’s Neck Bridges. They searched for the lost Holland designed “Model #3”. The Sea Hunters first undertook a side scan sonar survey and then dove and ground truth targets located in the search area. The side scan and dive footage was turned over to the U.S. Coast Guard and to the newly formed “Office of Homeland Security”. With the New York City skyline in the background "The Sea Hunters" dive team searched for this historic submarine while collecting underwater data which was used to make New York safer from the threat of terrorist attack.
Posted by victoria at 03:36 PM | Comments (1)
March 17, 2005
Sea Hunters and The Irish
It's Saint Patrick's Day again and this season the Sea Hunters searched for the Fenian Model(Hull NO.III) a submarine built for the Irish Republican Brotherhood, the Fenians. Find the sub on the map, in the east river, and watch clips about the search.
Erin Go Brath and we hope you learn something new about Irish-American heritage.
The Irish Republican Brotherhood, commonly known as "Fenians", was an Irish revolutionary secret society, founded in the United States by John O'Mahony in 1858. O'Mahony, who was a Celtic scholar, named his organization after the Fianna, the legendary band of Irish warriors led by Fionn mac Cumhail.
The submarine Fenian Ram was designed by John Philip Holland for use by the Fenian Brotherhood against the British. The Ram's construction and launching in 1881 by the Delamater Iron Company in New York was funded by the Fenians' Skirmishing Fund.
The “Sea Hunters”, working with Dr. Pete Capelloti, Chief Historian, U.S. Coast Guard, gained permission to side scan and dive on the South end of Manhattan Island, between the Whitestone and Throg’s Neck Bridges. They searched for the lost Holland designed “Model #3”. The Sea Hunters first undertook a side scan sonar survey and then dove and ground truth targets located in the search area. The side scan and dive footage was turned over to the U.S. Coast Guard and to the newly formed “Office of Homeland Security”. With the New York City skyline in the background "The Sea Hunters" dive team searched for this historic submarine while collecting underwater data which was used to make New York safer from the threat of terrorist attack.
Posted by victoria at 08:21 AM | Comments (0)
March 16, 2005
Juno Beach: The Untold Story
Join “The Sea Hunters” as they dive the beaches of Normandy and search for artifacts of the largest and most famous maritime invasion of all time. Just outside the active surf areas of Juno, Utah and Omaha beaches rest the visual remnants of “Operation Overlord”; the action which turned the tide in WWII and marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany in Europe.
The U.S. Navy’s Historical Center has begun a side scan sonar review of the Allied ordinance that remained in place off Omaha and Utah beaches. They have collected a massive library of images.
In the summer of 2004 “The Sea Hunters” and a team from the Canadian Navy will arrived in Normandy to start a similar survey on Juno Beach. Dr. Robert Nieland of the U.S. Naval Historical Center worked as a consultant to the Canadian team. The combined group carried out a side scan survey of Juno followed by an underwater video survey of sites at Juno, Utah and Omaha carried out by Mike and Warren Fletcher, the Sea Hunters’ team Archaeologist James Delgado and Canadian navy divers. This unique survey and exciting set of dives captured images from that fateful June morning which will transport you back in time and allow us to segue to our large selection of relevant historic footage and interviewees.
Airing on History Television Sunday, March 20 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
For more infomation find Juno Beach on the Interactive Map and read the archived Live from the Dive Juno Beach Blog.
Posted by victoria at 08:29 AM | Comments (0)
March 09, 2005
Chris in Halifax
Hi Everyone,
This is Chris Kingston. The Sea Hunters are back in Canada at the Shipwreck Central Headquarters and I'm in the middle of editing. (surprised? didn't think so) This time though "editing" is not for the internet, it's for The Sea Hunters series. We're into the post production of Doterel (the Chile show) and the HMCS Canada show we just shot in Florida. Doterel will be a cool show. It's 50 minutes of Sea Hunter dive adventure start to finish that even keeps my short attention span. That's how I judge my work.
For anyone interested, my infected eye is doing much better. Went to see the doc and now have a sufficient amount of eye sight to keep working.It was rough times in florida. Now all is well. We'll have a first draft of Doterel done in a few days and then Florida starts up right after that. There are about 6 weeks until The Sea Hunters and Shipwreck Central travel south and bask in the warmth of Singapore. There are still clips from both Chile and Florida to be posted. Keep checking in.
See you later.
Posted by livedive at 04:29 PM | Comments (2)
New Episode: The Seach for Bonhomme Richard
The Seach for Bonhomme Richard
This week join the Sea Hunters, along with Clive Cussler, as they search the North Sea for the United States Navy’s most famous vessel, Captain John Paul Jones’ Bonhomme Richard.
Airing on History Television Sunday, March 12 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
Posted by victoria at 08:04 AM | Comments (0)
February 22, 2005
Sea Hunters Out
The dive team and film crew should be arriving in Florida at any time, so if you were going to try to see them at the airport you probably missed them. We are waiting to see if Christine's luggage will arrive. Stay with Live from the Dive to find out about NURC, HMCS Canada/Queen of Nassau and all the adventure Florida has to offer our Christine Barker.
Posted by victoria at 08:34 AM | Comments (0)
February 15, 2005
New Episode: The Wreck of Arturo Prat's "Esmeralda"
Airing on History Television Sunday, February 20 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
When the Japanese Imperial Navy wanted an example of proper action for officers under fire in a naval engagement they chose the Chilean naval vessel “Esmeralda” and her captain, Arturo Prat, as the model to be studied by all officers graduating from the Japanese Naval Academy.
Mike Fletcher and “The Sea Hunters” team are invited back to Chile in order to assist German government archaeologists in the retrieval of artifacts from the German light cruiser “Dresden” which was lost during WWI off Robinson Crusoe Island in Chilean waters. During the trip the team is invited, by the Chilean Embassy, to dive and film the wreck site of Chile’s most famous naval vessel “Esmeralda”. After leaving Robinson Crusoe Island, the team, along with Chilean navy divers, travel over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) North to the site of the Battle of Iquique to search for the final resting place of “Esmeralda”. The first dive shows that the wreckage presents a vivid illustration of the horror of that battle. The broken hull of “Esmeralda,” her cannons lying quiet on the ocean floor and the skeletal remains of many of her brave crew all tell a graphic tale of the of the horror of battle and the cost of war.
For more information on the Esmeralda find her Vessel Profile on the Interactive Map
Posted by victoria at 08:10 AM | Comments (0)
February 11, 2005
The Search for the Early Submarines
Airing on History Television Sunday, February 13 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
The Irish Revolutionary Brotherhood was founded in 1858 and was known as the “Fenian Brotherhood”. This militantly anti-British group waged a propaganda war in the U.S. for Irish Independence and collected money in a “Skirmishing Fund” intended to support armed activities against British interests. John Holland’s brother James was a member of the “Fenians”, it was through James that the “Fenians” learned of John Holland’s work with submarines. When they approached him he offered to build a submersible warship that could attack and sink British Naval vessels. Holland started his work in1878 and by June of 1881 he had a working 31 ft. submersible that could dive to 50 ft., travel at a surface speed of 9 knots and shoot a dummy warhead from a pneumatic gun to a distance of several hundred yards. His sub was now a formidable new weapon with the potential to inflict heavy damage on the British navy. Concurrent to his work on the “Fenian Ram” Holland was also constructing a 16 ft., 1 ton model with which he intended to perfect his technical designs for submerged navigation. This fully working model submarine embodied all of Holland’s latest and most functional dive and steering mechanisms.
Holland’s steady progress in improving the “Fenian Ram” came to an abrupt halt in November 1883. Segments of the “Brotherhood’s” membership locked in a bitter and divisive struggle over the “Ram’s” potential for actually harming British vessels and over the expenditures being made from the “Skirmish Fund”. Late one night in November, fearing that the “Ram” would be seized in the ongoing legal proceedings, one of the warring factions gained access to Holland’s wharf and stole the “Fenian Ram” and Model #3. They took both vessels in tow but just after passing under the Whitestone Bridge, at the Mouth of the East River, “Model #3 foundered, took on water, snapped her tow line and sunk in 110 ft. of water.
The “Sea Hunters”, working with Dr. Pete Capelloti, Chief Historian, U.S. Coast Guard, gain permission to side scan and dive on the South end of Manhattan Island, between the Whitestone and Throg’s Neck Bridges. They will search for the lost Holland designed “Model #3”. The Sea Hunters will first undertake a side scan sonar survey and then dive and ground truth targets located in the search area. The side scan and dive footage will by turned over to the U.S. Coast Guard and to the newly formed “Office of Homeland Security”. With the New York City skyline in the background the “Sea Hunters” dive team will search for this historic submarine while collecting underwater data which will be used to make New York safer from the threat of terrorist attack.
Posted by victoria at 09:10 AM | Comments (0)
February 04, 2005
The Sea Hunters Season Premiere
The Search for the Avro Arrow Flight Models
Join “The Sea Hunters” as they dive under the cold waters of Lake Ontario, at the Picton Test Range, and off the coast of Virginia to search for exact replicas, reduced in size, of a plane that was the fastest fighter of its day. Launched by Nike Missiles, these models were propelled at supersonic speeds for test purposes and never recovered. Working with the National Aeronautics Museum in Canada, and the Chief Historian for the U.S. Coast Guard in the United States “The Sea Hunters” will dive both sites and search for the last remnants of the fastest plane that was never built and in the process tell a story of espionage, subterfuge and assassination that starts under the cold waters of the Atlantic and Great Lakes and moves to Bermuda, South Africa, Holland and Iraq.
Airing on History Television Sunday, February 6 at 7:00 AM | 6:00 PM ET check local listings
Posted by victoria at 06:41 PM | Comments (1)
January 19, 2005
6,435 km of Coastline: Welcome to Chile
The Sea Hunters departed last night for Punta Arenas, Chile. Our new edition, videoblographer Christine Barker, has traveled to Chile with the team to bring Shipwreck Central "Live from the Dive". She will be sending us video uplinks starting today or tomorrow, so check back, you don't want to miss her reports. The moment we hear from the Sea Hunters, so will you. Stay Tuned!
Posted by victoria at 08:43 AM | Comments (0)
January 17, 2005
Blizzard
I have not made it into Shipwreck Central Headquarters yet. So I am posting some pictures for you, post blizzard, from my house. It is still very messy out but I am sure the team's flight will go out tomorrow as planned.
Posted by victoria at 11:11 AM | Comments (0)
Blizzard Today, Strait of Magellan Tomorrow
As the Sea Hunters prepare to leave tomorrow for Punta Arenas, Chile and the Strait of Magellan, their preparations have been hampered by a blizzard. Stay tuned for more updates.
Posted by victoria at 10:54 AM | Comments (0)
January 14, 2005
Two Shipwrecks for the Price of One: Runners and Raiders
Scattered on the ocean's bottom, thousands of kilometres apart, lie the remains of three vessels linked by their service to a tragic cause. Each is a testament to the desperate naval war waged during the American Civil War, and the innovations of a doomed Confederate navy. Join the Sea Hunters as they explore two vessels which smuggled goods to the rebel armies and the wreck of the most famous open sea raider of the war, the CSS Alabama.
During America's great Civil War, President Lincoln ordered the blockade of all southern ports in an effort to starve the Confederacy into submission. Necessity being the mother of invention, the Confederacy countered by developing a diversified naval strategy. Drawing on the steam technology of the day, two new types of ships were built. One was the blockade-runner, a fast vessel designed to slip past and outrun the ships of the Union navy. The other was the raider, a well-armed warship whose purpose was to strike at the Union commerce on the open sea. These new naval tactics would mark a place in the evolution of naval warfare.
When Confederate shore batteries opened fire on the besieged garrison at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbour, South Carolina on April 8th, 1861, the American Civil War began. The Confederacy faced a very real prospect of slow strangulation as the federal navy grew increasingly effective at intercepting vessels carrying supplies in and out of the south. This quandary would lead to the development of a new phase in the evolution of naval design. With the unofficial help of England, the south would create two new and very different classes of ship - the blockade-runners, for swiftly darting in and out of the harbours under the noses of the Union navy, and the open sea raiders, for the destruction of the enemy merchant fleet.
Two blockade-runners rest in the warm, clear waters off Bermuda. Largely intact, these two wrecks offer unique insights into these highly specialized ships, and into the very nature of Bermuda's involvement in the American Civil War.
Now join us as we visit the last resting places of two blockade-runners and one of the most famous Confederate raiders in history, the CSS Alabama.
Airing Sunday, January 16 at 6:00 PM EST (CC) on History Television Canada.
Watch clips from this episode by finding the CSS Alabama on the map.
Posted by victoria at 11:07 AM | Comments (0)
January 10, 2005
Human Torpedoes: The Wreck of USS Mississinewa
On the Ulithi Atoll, South of Guam lays the wreckage of the USS Mississinewa, a fuel carrying cargo vessel. She was sunk on November 20, 1944 and carries the distinction of being the only vessel confirmed to have been sunk by a Japanese torpedo manned by a Kamikaze pilot who steered the torpedo, a “Kaiten” or “heaven Shaker” to its target and to his own death. Next to the wreckage of the Mississinewa lays a cylindrical object, which could only be the only “suicide torpedo” ever located in the field of battle. Sea Hunter James Delgado, one of the few scholars to study these unique craft, journeys to the Ulithi Atoll to determine just what lies on the bottom and what really happened to the “Mississinewa”.
Airing January 13 at 10:00:00 PM EST on National Geographic Channel Canada
Watch clips from this episode by finding the USS Mississinewa on the map.
Also read about the Sea Hunters experience in the Ulithi Atoll in the Live From The Dive blog.
See photographs from the Ulithi Atoll in the magazine.
Posted by victoria at 03:10 PM | Comments (0)
January 06, 2005
Leopoldville/Clayoquot: Death of Christmas Eve
Watch this episode, airing Friday, January 7th, on History Television. Check your local listings for times.
December 24, 1944, two U-boats in the Atlantic are still at work late on Christmas Eve. Off the coast of France one sinks the American troop ship Leopoldville sending over 800 GI's to their grave. The other, in an effort to close the convoy ports of North America, sinks the Clayoquot four miles off the shores of North America. Join The Sea Hunters as they dive the depths and tell the story of what happened and what didn't happen on Christmas Eve, 1944.
On December 16th, the last of Hitler's reserves, smashed through the American lines along the forests of the Ardennes and hurtled toward Antwerp and the sea. Throughout allied Europe, men who had been preparing for a quiet Christmas, perhaps the last of the war, were suddenly called into action.
The troop transport Leopoldville was one of the first to mobilize. She left England with over two thousand two hundred American soldiers on route to Cherbourg, France, and the embattled allied forces. But just a few kilometers from her destination, she was torpedoed and eight hundred and two men perished.
When Leopoldville was torpedoed there was mass confusion on board. What followed on board were feats of heroic bravery, and outrageous incompetence, which ultimately resulted in the loss of over seven hundred and sixty three soldiers and crew. Most of those killed were between the ages of eighteen and thirty-one. The survivors were given strict orders not to discuss what had happened that Christmas Eve. At first, families of the dead were told only that their loved one was 'missing in action', and later that they had died in combat, but no details were provided. The details were kept secret by the British and American war departments for over fifty years.
Across the Atlantic at Halifax, the Canadian minesweeper Clayoquot departed with a convoy of troops and supplies for the reeling allied forces. Tragically, on December 24th, she too was struck down by a German U-boat. Ironically, her sinking ultimately saved hundreds of lives. And those who survived that Christmas of 1944 no doubt pay tribute every Christmas Eve to the crew of the minesweeper that saved a convoy.
Clive's finding of the Leopoldville and the team's finding of Clayoquot, helps to write a final chapter in the events that transpired so many years ago.
To learn more about the Leopoldville and the Clayoquot, and to watch a clip from this episode, find them on the map.
Posted by victoria at 10:59 AM | Comments (0)
December 21, 2004
Christmas Eve with the Sea Hunters
The Princess Sophia Tragedy: Airing December 24. Check local listing for times.
Near the center of The Lynn Canal - just off the coast of Juneau, Alaska - a team of shipwreck hunters employ the latest sophisticated equipment to uncover the story of the most tragic shipwreck of the Pacific Northwest: the Princess Sophia. Join the Sea Hunters as they explore the final resting place of one of North America's most controversial sinkings: the Princess Sophia.
This is a tale of a captain who rolled the dice against a stormy Alaskan sea and lost, taking his ship, his crew, and every one of his more than 350 passengers to an early grave.
The Klondike Gold Rush of 1897 and smaller booms that followed enticed a flood of treasure seekers north to the Yukon and Alaska. During those years, the hardy coastal steamers of the Canadian Pacific Railroad and her competitors served as the only practical means of transportation in and out of the region. They sailed the Inside Passage along the stunningly beautiful shores of the Alaska Panhandle, carrying freight and passengers to and from the ports of Vancouver, Victoria and Seattle.
One section of that run was the Lynn Canal, a narrow fjord running from Skagway in the north to Juneau at its mouth. It was here - in these waters - that a simple error in judgment led to heartbreak for the entire region. Here, after hours of helpless waiting for rescue, the passengers of the Princess Sophia slipped into a watery grave. Eighty years have passed and still the question echoes in the Alaskan wind - could they have been saved?
Shock waves from the disaster reverberated throughout the entire Northwest.
Businessmen, community figures, planners and personalities - they all died at once, with no one left behind to take their place or to build their memorials. The Sophia tragedy certainly underscored the need for changes in marine safety regulations and procedures.
Sea Hunter team leader John Davis and dive coordinator Mike Fletcher flew to Juneau, Alaska. They intended to explore the reef and dive the wreck that lies beside it. They wanted to learn more about what happened during Sophia's last terrible moments.
To watch clips from this episode find the Princess Sophia on the map.
Posted by victoria at 03:52 PM | Comments (0)
December 13, 2004
The Search for the Carpathia
Watch the episode that started it all: Season 1, Episode 1 The Search for the Carpathia. Airing this Friday, December 17, on History Television. Check your local listings for times.
More than 300 kilometers off the coast of England, a team of modern adventurers penetrate the ocean's depths using the most sophisticated search equipment, to uncover another of the world's most famous shipwrecks.
Join the sea hunters as they discover the final resting place of the ship that saved the Titanic survivors ... R.M.S. Carpathia.
She is most well known as the ship that rescued 706 survivors from Titanic in April 1912. The Carpathia was sunk by a German U-Boat while traveling in convoy from Liverpool to Boston in July 1918. Just off the beautiful Irish coast in 500 feet of cold clear water, this boat was found by Clive Cussler's NUMA crew after a lengthy and costly search.
It was identified in September 2000. Cussler reported that the Carpathia was standing upright and unbroken in 514 feet of water 120 miles off Fastnet Ireland, debris fanned out from the holes caused by the torpedoes. The Spring of 2001 saw the first archaeological assessment of the site and the Eco-Nova team were there to document the event.
The Cunarder steamer had been captained by Arthur Rostron. On the night of April 15th, 1912, Rostron had picked up the SOS call from Titanic and immediately rushed to her assistance. Carpathia's journey was fraught with challenge, for on the way, she and her valiant officers and crew, had to make their way through the same icebergs as the Titanic- and at full speed.
The result of their mad dash through the frozen ice fields was to rescue several lifeboats with 706 survivors. There was no sign of Titanic. She had sunk hours before. With the survivors on board, Rostron steered Carpathia back to New York. Her captain and crew were acknowledged as heroes. During the course of investigating Carpathia, The Sea Hunters were given a copy of a never before published letter written aboard the Carpathia and describing the subsequent scenes on board, on their way back to New York.
The story of Titanic has gone down in history but how did the heroic Carpathia end her days?
Carpathia's glory was short-lived. Just six years later, fate would place Carpathia once more in the path of tragedy. It was during WWI on July 17, 1918. R.M.S. Carpathia had been pressed into convoy service, carrying troops and supplies across the Atlantic to the raging war. Along this supply line, laying in wait, were sea hunters of a different breed, the deadly German u-boats. Enroute from Liverpool to New York, one of these u-boats, U-55, torpedoed and sank Carpathia.
For more information on the Carpathia find her on the map, her vessel profile is loaded with video.
Posted by victoria at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
December 06, 2004
Job Posting: Videoblographer
We're looking for a very special person at ShipwreckCentral.com, maybe even more than one.
The job involves seven 2-week trips to far flung places in the world over the next eight months, shadowing our Sea Hunters dive team as a Videoblographer, reporting back daily to the website in a videoblog format - "Live from the Dive". Chile, Florida, Singapore, Estonia, Turkey, George's Bank, Jasper...
We need someone who can combine a high geek quotient, getting the job done technically and the files uploaded with little support, with an engaging on-camera personality and no fear of getting the story, whatever that story may be. Turning water into wine also helps. Writing/blogging skills are a requirement. Being able to handle video and sound gear a plus, although there is support for that. An interest in diving and shipwrecks certainly helps. Your age, gender, or geographic location is not an issue.
So, have a burning desire to be on camera, and be calling some of the creative shots? Love travel? Like getting paid? Like having the proper gear to get the job done? (A 12" Powerbook+ HDV camera are our tools of the trade). Like scrambling to figure out how to do things that have never been done before?
Posted by victoria at 01:02 PM | Comments (0)
December 02, 2004
Lost at Sea: Akron and Macon
This friday night stay in to watch The Sea Hunters as they search for the remains of this unique vessel of war and tell this fascinating history. History Television- Check local listings for times.
In April of 1933, the United States Navy Rigid Airship “Akron” crashed off the coast of New Jersey. Seventy-three Navy airmen were lost in this horrifying disaster. The development of rigid airships and “blimps” ended in Europe at the end of the First World War. In the U.S. and Great Britain however, limited programs continued. The Akron was commissioned in 1929 and went into service on October 27, 1931. She was built at the U.S. Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation in Akron Ohio. The Akron was built with the capability of docking and hangaring five aircraft while in flight. This attribute makes her unique. She was a one of a kind war machine, a flying aircraft carrier that could carry fighter and bomber aircraft fully armed and fueled, directly to a target which could be either landlocked or near water. The loss of the Akron represents a fiery and tragic end in the evolution of airborne warfare.
Akron’s sister airship, the Macon, suffered a similar fate by crashing into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. Ironically, the Macon was carrying the Akron’s five aircraft when it crashed.
Can't wait to watch this episode? Check out the Akron and Macon on the map.
Posted by victoria at 11:01 AM | Comments (0)
November 22, 2004
Sunk at Robinson Crusoe Island- SMS Dresden
This friday night stay in to watch The Sea Hunters dive off the coast of Chile. History Television- Check local listings for times.
In May of 1914, the German Light Cruiser “Dresden” was trapped and sunk by British destroyers. She had been at anchor at Robinson Crusoe Island, 400 miles off the coast of Santiago Chile. Many of her crew were killed and the remainder were placed in a Chilean prison. One of those captured was Wilhelm Canaris. He later escaped Chile by horseback, entered Argentina, and with the help of German sympathizers returned to Germany near the end of the war. Canaris stayed in the German Navy and rose through the ranks until he became Admiral. On New Year’s Day of 1935, Canaris was named as head of the German Abwehr, the Military Intelligence Service. He served as its chief for the next 9 years and in that time assisted with efforts to overthrow Hitler as well as provide the allies with important information on German troop movements. Eventually, Canaris was hung, at Hitler’s orders in the last two weeks of the war. Join Sea Hunter James Delgado and the Sea Hunter dive team as they dive this important WW1 wreck and trace the path of Canaris, as he escapes to become an enigmatic figure of the German Resistance.
For more information on SMS Dresden find her on the Interactive Map.
Posted by victoria at 09:57 AM | Comments (0)
November 09, 2004
Clive Cussler Answers Fans
Attention Clive Cussler fans! While shooting on location, at Clive's home, our very own Mike Fletcher turned into a roving reporter and had an opportunity to ask Clive some questions from Shipwreck Central fans. Listen to Clive talk about how he became interested in shipwrecks, the future of Dirk Pitt, how his real life adventures effect his writing and how you can get up off your couch and become involved!
Do you have questions for Clive Cussler and the Sea Hunters team? Post your questions on the Shipwreck Central Community Forum.
Posted by victoria at 11:29 AM | Comments (2)
Season 4: Tonquin the 'Holy Grail' of shipwrecks
Season 4 of the Sea Hunters will begin to solve the 200 year old Tonquin mystery. Learn more about the Tonquin here.
Keep watching the blog for video clips.
Posted by victoria at 09:15 AM | Comments (1)
November 08, 2004
Season 4: Looking Good
For all the Sea Hunters fans that can’t wait for new episodes check out the description of this season in the Episode Guide. Here is an update on this seasons progress:
• The Search for the Avro Arrow Flight Models and The Search for the Early Submarines have been completed.
• Operation Overlord, The Search of Juno Beach is in the fine cut stage. I have seen it and it is one of the best episodes of the Sea Hunters too date.
• The Wreck of Arturo Prat's "Esmeralda" is being prepared for air on History Television Canada, where you can watch the Sea Hunters, Fridays and Saturdays, Check your local listings.
• The Search for U-215 and the Wreck of “Alexander Macomb” is having the finishing touches put on it by Assistant Editor Todd Jackson. This might me the most anticipated episode ever!
• The Search for Bonhomme Richard is also in the final stages
Keep following the blog for previews of the new season.
Posted by victoria at 10:55 AM | Comments (0)
October 28, 2004
News Flash: Sea Hunter on Daily Planet
Tonight at 8:00 p.m. (Atlantic Time Canada) on The Discovery Channel Canada's Daily Planet see Sea Hunter, Mike Fletcher, talk about his experiences diving shipwrecks around the world. Check your local listings for times in your area.
Posted by victoria at 02:28 PM | Comments (0)
