An exploration team, known for its attempts at deep diving to uncover the secrets of the ocean, has completed its deepest dive yet. It is also the deepest dive ever done in the world. They were able to dive into an 80-year-old US navy destroyer that sunk back during WWII. The USS Johnston was sunk during the Battle of Leyte Gulf on October 25, 1944, with only half the crew surviving.
Parks Stephenson, the team navigator, and historian for Caladan Oceanic gave a little background to the ship saying that “It took fire from the largest warship ever constructed — the Imperial Japanese Navy battleship Yamato, and ferociously fought back”. Caladan Oceanic is an undersea tech company based in Texas.
The dive was broken into 2 eight hour dives, almost 6,500 meters into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of the Philippines. Reaching the Titantic would take half of that distance. The founder of Caladan Oceanic, Victor Vescovo, revealed the news in a tweet while sharing some videos and pictures.
Paying homage to the crew, Victor said that “It’s been so wonderful to share the story of the USS Johnston with so many people. Her crew and Captain, Ernest Evans – the first Native American in the Navy to be awarded the Medal of Honor, were extraordinarily heroic.”
Finding the ship may help the crew and the families of the crew that didn’t survive finally find some solace and closure. The dive crew also laid down two wreaths to honor the brave crew. A lot of lives were lost during WWII and one can only imagine how many memorials of that time may still be in the Ocean.
You can watch a video of the wreckage below.
