New, first-of-its-kind footage of the Titanic shows the anchor chain, a giant harbor anchor and a single-ended boiler that fell to the bottom of the sea when the ship split and sank more than 110 years ago.
The images, taken by diving tour company OceanGate Expeditions, reveal an astonishing level of detail and color not seen by the human eye since April 12, 1912.
The team filmed the historic ship in the highest video resolution, with a width of approximately 8000 pixels (8 kilobytes), allowing them to zoom in on certain areas without losing image quality.
This allowed them to see never-before-seen details, such as "Noah Hingley & Sons Ltd", engraved on the harbor-side anchor, and provides insight into how the wreck has changed in his watery grave.
This is OceanGate Expeditions' second annual expedition to the Titanic, which transports mission specialists and researchers to the massive ship while safely enclosed within the company's submersible Titan.
The Titanic's voyage took place over an eight-day mission that began in May and ends in June, and each "mission specialist" seat cost $250,000 - an increase of $125,000 over the previous year.
"The stunning detail in the 8k footage will help our team and marine archaeologists more accurately discern the decline of the Titanic as we take new images in 2023 and beyond," Stockton Rush, president of OceanGate Expeditions, said in a statement.
Citizen explorers, or mission specialists, set out on their adventure by sailing aboard an expedition ship from St. John's in Newfoundland, Canada, to the site of the Titanic wreck, 370 miles away.
OceanGate Expeditions then used a five-man submersible of carbon fiber and titanium-class Cyclops to ferry archaeologists and paying customers to the wreck—the craft taking up to three specialists on the mission per dive lasting eight to 10 hours.
The Titan is equipped with the latest camera technology to capture high-resolution images that will help determine the rate of wreck decomposition and assess the marine life that inhabits the wreck.
The expedition plunged into the depths of the North Atlantic Ocean until the submarine lights flashed on the monstrous ship.
During the voyage, divers discovered the number one hull, the number one cargo carrier, and the solid bronze covers, the metal structures used to move heavy weight by means of ropes, cables or chains.
These were all seen for the first time since the Titanic sank to the bottom of the ocean.
Experts believe decades of rescue and other expeditions - including director James Cameron's famous dive in 2001 - have further weakened the integrity of the 108-year-old structure.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the ship's hull is likely to collapse within the next 40 years.
