A team of explorers accidentally finds old ship graveyard nestled deep in the still and cold waters of the Black Sea.
Deep in the waters of the Black Sea there lies centuries-old shipwrecks discovered by explorers. Thanks to cutting edge technology, awesome images of preserved shipwrecks have been captured.
About 40 shipwrecks were discovered by a team from UK’s University of Southampton. They believe these ships may have been used by vast empires including the Ottoman Empire which once ruled from the 13th to the 19th century.
Details about the ships, including trade routes and wars fought if any have yet to be confirmed but if their estimates are correct, these once belonged to the Byzantine and Ottoman empires.
The discovery was quite accidental in that the team originally wanted to study historical water levels in the Black Sea at the close of the Ice Age.
The ships were awesome “surprise” finds stumbled upon during one of their geophysical explorations.
So many centuries have passed yet the fleet of ships which were built of wood and other structures have been miraculously preserved. One of the University’s top archeologists, Professor Jon Adams, explained that the fleet was found at depths of more than 490 feet. At this level, the Black Sea gets very little oxygen from above. The oxygen concentration at this depth is so low and this condition has kept the fleet from wearing out too fast.
Capturing photos of the wreck was made possible using 3D recorders made for underwater environs. Remote controlled equipment were used to reach areas more 5,000 feet below the sea.
Adams revealed that the team’s successful 3D technique has put them on top of other experts using the methodology. He said they’re the only ones so far who have captured extensive images of shipwrecks at such great depths.
The pictures were actually digital images created through photogrammetry. Measurements are made from photographs, particularly from the actual placements of millions of surface points.
The process took many days to complete but the effort and the wait were all worth it.
