Olympic-class ocean liner
When "Titanic" sank in 1912 and "Britannic" sank in 1916, their sinkings did not receive the same attention, due to the death toll (1,517 on "Titanic" and 30 on "Britannic"). Because the exact position of the sinking of the "Britannic" is known and the location is shallow, the wreck was discovered relatively easily in 1975. "Titanic", however, drew everyone's attention in 1912. After several attempts, the wreck was finally located by Jean-Louis Michel of Ifremer and Robert Ballard following a top secret mission for the US Navy to investigate the wreckage of two nuclear submarines, USS Thresher (SSN-593) and the USS Scorpion (SSN-589), that sank in the North Atlantic in the 1960s. The discovery of the wreck occurred on 1 September 1985, at 25 kilometres from the position given of the sinking. The wreck lies about 4,000 metres deep, broken in two. The bow is relatively well preserved, but the stern partially imploded, and to a large extent disintegrated during the descent and impact on the seabed.
Carr Van Anda
He was instrumental in getting a scoop for "The Times" on the story of the "Titanic"'s sinking in 1912. His most notable stories include the sinking of the RMS Titanic, and the 1911 State Capitol fire in Albany, New York which he covered with a phone call and some journalistic invention. While other newspapers were printing the White Star Line's ambiguous story about the "Titanic" having trouble after hitting an iceberg, Van Anda (who had received a bulletin reporting a CQD (now SOS) call from the Titanic) figured that a lack of communication from the ship meant that the worst had happened and printed a headline stating that the "Titanic" had sunk. As his career progressed, it was said of him that "he is the most illustrious unknown man in America." According to a "New Yorker" profile piece, V.A. (as he was called) practiced "a fierce anonymity while bestowing fleeting fame on some and withholding it from others."