Why exactly would somebody spend $250,000 to see it in person?
The Titan submersible search and rescue of 2023 has all news audiences eagerly awaiting updates every hour.
111 years after the largest passenger ship of the time sank via striking an iceberg, a private company named OceanGate sold several tickets for $250,000 each to see the wreck site in a cramped submersible.
The company was founded 14 years ago in Everett, Washington by its CEO, Stockton Rush. According to the company, 28 people paid the hefty sum and took the risk last year.
Stockton Rush is also the pilot who, mere hours ago, attempted to take two wealthy businessmen, one from Dubai and one from Pakistan, to a depth equal to five of the world's tallest buildings stacked on top of each other.
Perhaps the saddest part of the story is that one of the few on board is the 19-year-old son of the Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood. The other man on board is Paul-Henri Nargeolet, a world-renowned maritime exploring expert who has been down to the Titanic wreck 35 times.
For days the public has known that the crew only had about 90 hours of oxygen after the ship on the surface lost contact with the submersible that was thousands of feet below the surface.
Although it is a rare outcome, the risk was quite bold given the fact that it is not linked to the boat on the surface.
The price even billionaires are willing to pay is quite astounding when considering that there already exists high definition footage of the entire Titanic wreck site on YouTube. Perhaps watching it on a VR headset would be a cheaper alternative.
The video, which over 2 million people have seen, gives us great insight into which part of the wreck site people want to see the most.
The most viewed part of the video by far is the 21st minute. During this minute, it is not the bow or the stern of the ship that is in view, but instead, it shows personal belongings on the ocean floor.
The sea floor species eating away at the ship's metal structure have less appetite for rubber shoes, teapots, a hat and what looks to be a hairbrush.
Around the peak time is also a plack with ominous writing confirming the ship's identity.
The peak may also be due to something that looks like the skeletal remains of an arm and hand to some untrained eyes.
But in reality, any sinking corpses would have moved away from the ship due to underwater currents. If there are any skeletal remains or teeth at the wreck site, they are most likely tucked away in rooms submersibles can't access.
Last year OceanGate released the first 8K footage of the Titanic to their YouTube channel, which has since received over 5 million views. In the description they try to sell the viewer on being one of the 2023 participants.
