WHOI Captures Captures Close-Ups of Famous Shipwrecks

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has completed highly detailed surveys of two Antarctic-era shipwrecks tied to explorers Ernest Shackleton and Robert Falcon Scott. Researchers departed from Falmouth last month for a three-week trip to the Labrador Sea off the coast of Greenland. Using support from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, they captured 3-D images of Shackleton’s last ship, the Quest, and Scott’s Terra Nova, producing the first comprehensive visual surveys of both vessels. WHOI teams said the digital renderings are meant to help the public understand the wrecks and also improve scientific work on degradation and ecosystem impacts. The project combined dives with the Alvin submersible—previously used to survey the Titanic in 1986—with a remotely operated vehicle for hard-to-reach angles.