A team of marine scientists has recently discovered a 300-year-old shipwreck off the coast of North Carolina. The researchers found the wreck using special sonar technology and underwater machinery. According to them, the shipwreck may have been used in the America Revolution, in the 1700s.
Cindy Van Dover, a marine scientist from Duke University, and one of the researchers who led the expedition, explained that they discovered the shipwreck in waters of about 1 mile deep on July 12. Van Dover said they identified the wreck at the bottom of the sea using computerized submarine and an underwater robot.
Inside the shipwreck the scientists found artifacts such as iron chains, bottles, pottery jugs, navigational tools and a metal compass. Archaeologists who saw the photos of the artifacts believe the wreck dates back to the eighteenth century, which makes the discovery a rare find.
Van Dover said she is very excited about the discovery, which she believes is another confirmation that even with today’s advance technology for ocean exploration, the deep sea is still full of mysteries. Van Dover is the director of the Marine Laboratory at Duke University and the leader of the expedition.
The scientists were out studying the ecosystems of the deep sea and were coming back to an area known as Blake Plateau that had been scanned with the sonar before. Researchers from the University of Oregon and North Carolina State University were also involved in the expedition and were all aboard a vessel that belongs to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
They came across the 300-year-old shipwreck using Alvin, the manned submarine and Sentry, an unmanned underwater vehicle. After discovering it, they sent all the data for identification to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Heritage Program. The researchers hope that they will be able to identify it and date it accordingly.
James Delgado, the director of the Marine Heritage Program, stated that the wreck is located at approximately 150 miles offshore from what is known as the path of the Gulf Stream. This area has been a popular maritime trade route for many centuries, according to Delgado. He said the discovery could reveal important information about the history of the United States as a newly-formed country, especially about its trade business.
Delgado said there are many that lie on the bottom of the sea but it’s very difficult to find them because of the extreme depths.
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