SHIPWRECK! Pirates & Treasure is with us at Discovery Place right now and we’re very excited. But the exhibit does raise a few questions:
* Since the sea floor is about the same size as the area of the moon’s surface, how do marine archaeologists find anything and how in the world did Odyssey Marine Exploration find the U.S.S. Republic? Seems to me like that’s not a needle in a haystack; it’s a pinhole in one of grandma’s old quilts.
* Which do you think is the most important ingredient: luck, technology, or science?
* What are ROV’s and photomosaics, anyway and how do they apply to marine exploration?
* Aside from finding artifacts, what other uses are there for ROV’s and photomosaics today?
Vice President, Learning Experiences 7 Posts
Robert Corbin is VP, Learning Experiences at Discovery Place. Prior to joining Discovery Place in 2007, Robert spent 15 years in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system, teaching science and serving Science Academic Content Coach and mentor. Robert has developed science curricula for the Weather Channel, Paramount Pictures, the ASPCA, and the Environmental Literacy Council and he wrote curriculum to accompany Al Gore’s film, An Inconvenient Truth.
Robert holds an M.A. degree in Natural Science Teaching from the University of South Carolina and a B.S. in Science Education from Michigan State University and recently completed his doctoral degree at UNC-Charlotte.
Comments
Post a CommentNautical archaeologists have a variety of technologies and techniques to
make excavation easier. Aerial photographs can give detailed pictures of
shallow, clear water but deeper water is more challenging. Magnetometer
(pronounced mag-neh-TAH-meh-ter) are used to find metal objects. With the
USS Republic, sonar devices were use which send waves of sound through
the water that bounce off solid objects and return as echoes, which are
recorded by electronic equipment. These recordings allow scientists to
determine probable locations for treasure!
Robert Corbin - September 14, 2009
I think it must be a bit of them all. Science and technology are a must, but since the ocean is so vast, I have to believe that a little luck is needed as well. Even with the information from old shipping records and the other sources used, there is still no guarantee that anything will be found. I wonder as well if there is a device that can detect a large mass of metal that is deep in the ocean?
Andrae bergeron - September 14, 2009
Galen,
Great post! Thanks.
Blaise Pascal said: "Chance favors the prepared mind". Marine Archaeologists use information from multiple sources to find shipwrecks and treasure. As it turns out Odyssey Marine Exploration used a combination of computer modeling, sonar, and historical data to hone in on the proximity the U.S.S. Republic. The location was partially surmised by looking at shipping news records, weather records, hurricane wind speed and other Marine Intelligence collected at the time. The locations where survivors from the wreck were recovered in their lifeboats also provided invaluable clues about distance traveled in the ocean, rates of the Gulf Stream and probable area where the ship may have gone down. Think about a film of the lifeboats moving backwards in time. As for detecting metal, Cesium magnetometers help to distinguish huge masses of metal from geological formations. This instrument would "spike" if it came in close proximity to a large metal craft. The use of photomosaics allows researchers to seek out anomalies too. There is indeed an observable difference between a man made object and one found "naturally" in the ocean.
Discovery Place - September 11, 2009
Never would I turn down any luck. However, with the size of the ocean I would hardly leave marine exploration to luck. A combination of science and technology is a necessity. The general proximity must be known. When looking for something as large as a ship, is there a device that has the capability of detecting that much metal from the surface of the ocean? Even if the general vicinity is known, the ocean's depth will still make for a difficult task.
Galen Luse - September 11, 2009