Old German U-boat Wreck From World War I Was Discovered By Researchers
Update: 2022-10-02 15:30 IST
The reckages of ships and submarines deteriorate swiftly in the salinity of the ocean.
One hundred years after being sunk in US waters, a German U-Boat submarine from World War I has been located. Eric Petkovic, a historian, shipwreck researcher, and expert wreck diver, found the shipwreck, known as U-boat U-111 marine.
The US Navy sank the U-111, the final German U-Boat submarine from World War I, off the coast of Virginia in 1922. The submarine sank at a depth of 1,600 feet. Petkovic unexpectedly found it in about 400 feet of water. Surprisingly, it was found in barely 400 feet of water off the coast of Virginia, much shallower than anticipated but still outside the range of human diving for all but a few highly skilled technical divers.
In addition to this, five German submarines from World War I and eight from World War II have been identified in US waters, with the U-111 being the only one confirmed to have sunk off the US coast that has not yet been located.
The reckages of ships and submarines reportedly degrade quickly in the ocean's salinity because the salt causes metals to corrode and rust more quickly. Additionally, boring worms and other deep-sea critters usually eat the wood that is accessible.
Rusty Cassway and Mr. Pekovic utilised their 45-foot R/V Explorer dive boat to find the unidentified wreck, and then employed a ROV (remotely operated vehicle) to look for the U-boat at a location where they thought the wreckage was.