The US Navy had detected a suspected implosion with its top-secret acoustic detection system in the area where the Titan submersible went missing. The Titan, which was conducting a mission to explore the Titanic wreckage, experienced a loss of communication with its surface vessel, the Polar Prince, approximately one hour and 45 minutes into its dive on Sunday morning.
Thursday morning, the Coast Guard’s Northeast division reported that debris had been discovered within the search area by a remotely operated vehicle (ROV):
The implosion was detected by the Navy’s acoustic detection system on Sunday, but for an unknown reason the information was not disclosed by the US Coast Guard until Thursday.
From The Wall Street Journal:
A top secret military acoustic detection system designed to spot enemy submarines first heard what the U.S. Navy suspected was the Titan submersible implosion hours after the vehicle began its mission, officials involved in the search said.
The Navy began listening for the Titan almost as soon as the sub lost communications, according to a U.S. defense official. Shortly after the submersible’s disappearance Sunday, the U.S. system detected what it suspected was the sound of an implosion near the debris site discovered Thursday and reported its findings to the commander on site, U.S. defense officials said.
“The U.S. Navy conducted an analysis of acoustic data and detected an anomaly consistent with an implosion or explosion in the general vicinity of where the Titan submersible was operating when communications were lost,” a senior U.S. Navy official told The Wall Street Journal in a statement. “While not definitive, this information was immediately shared with the Incident Commander to assist with the ongoing search and rescue mission.”
