Titanic
Submitted by John Smith, June 22, 2006, 11:50 am
Wreck Type: Ship
Wreck Location: Newfoundland
Date of Wreck: April 14, 1912
Wreck Details:
RMS Titanic was a passenger liner that became infamous for its collision with an iceberg and dramatic sinking in 1912. Initially the second of a trio of superliners, she was designed to dominate the transatlantic travel business for the White Star Line. Owned by the White Star Line and built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Ireland (now Northern Ireland), United Kingdom, Titanic was the largest passenger steamship in the world at the time of her sinking. During Titanic's maiden voyage (from Southampton, England; to Cherbourg, France; Queenstown (Cobh), Ireland; then New York), she struck an iceberg at 11:40 PM (ship's time) on Sunday evening April 14, 1912, broke into two pieces, and sank two hours and forty minutes later at 2:20 AM Monday morning.
According to the US Senate investigation, 1,523 people perished in the accident, ranking it as one of the worst peacetime maritime disasters in history and by far the most famous. Titanic's design used some of the most advanced technology available at the time and the ship was popularly believed to be "unsinkable". It was a great shock that, despite the advanced technology and experienced crew, Titanic sank with a great loss of life. The media frenzy about Titanic's famous victims, the legends about what happened on board the ship, the resulting changes to maritime law, and the discovery of the wreck in 1985 by a team led by Robert Ballard and Jean-Louis Michel have made Titanic persistently famous in the years since.
Details:
Owners: White Star Line
Builders: Harland and Wolff yards in Belfast, Ireland
Port of registry: Liverpool, United Kingdom
Laid down: March 31, 1909
Launched: May 31, 1911
Christened: Not christened
Maiden voyage: April 10, 1912
Fate: Hit an iceberg at 11:40 P.M on April 14, 1912. Sank on April 15, 1912; wreck discovered in 1985.
General Characteristics:
Gross Tonnage: 46,328 GRT
Displacement: 52,310 Long Tons
Length: 882 ft. 9 in. (269 m)
Beam: 92.5 feet (28 m)
Power: 29 boilers. Two four cylinder triple expansion reciprocating engines each producing 16000 hp (12 MW) for outer two propellers. One low pressure turbine producing 18000 hp (13.5 MW) for the center propeller. Total 50,000 hp (37 MW)
Propulsion: Two bronze triple blade side propellers. One bronze quadruple blade central propeller.
Speed: 23 knots (42.5 km/h) (26.4 mi/h)
Number of Passengers (Maiden Voyage): 1912 - Total 2,223
First Class: 329 Second Class: 285 Third Class: 710 Crew: 899.
Harland and Wolff Shipyard
Titanic was a White Star Line ocean liner built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland and was designed to compete with rival company Cunard Line's Lusitania and Mauretania. Titanic, along with its Olympic class sisters, Olympic and the soon to be built Britannic (originally to be named Gigantic), were intended to be the largest, most luxurious ships ever to operate. Titanic was designed by Harland and Wolff chairman Lord Pirrie, head of Harland and Wolff's design department Thomas Andrews and general manager Alexander Carlisle, with the plans regularly sent to White Star Line's managing director J. Bruce Ismay for suggestions and approval. Construction of Titanic, funded by the American J.P. Morgan and his International Mercantile Marine Co., began on March 31, 1909. Titanic No. 401, was launched two years and two months later on May 31, 1911. Titanic's outfitting was completed on March 31 the following year. Titanic was 882 ft 9 in (269 m) long and 92 ft 6 in (28 m) at its beam, it had a Gross Register Tonnage of 46,328 tons, and a height from the water line to the boat deck of 60 ft (18 m).
Comparisons to the Olympic
Although it enclosed more space and therefore had a higher Gross Register Tonnage, the hull was exactly the same length as Titanic's sister ship Olympic. Titanic contained two reciprocating four-cylinder, triple expansion, inverted steam engines and one low pressure Parsons turbine which powered three propellers. There were 29 boilers fired by 159 coal burning furnaces that made possible a top speed of 23 knots (43 km/h). Only three of the four 63 foot (19 m) tall funnels were functional; the fourth funnel, which only served as a vent, was added to make the ship look more impressive. The ship could hold a total of 3,547 passengers and crew and, because it carried mail, its name was given the prefix RMS (Royal Mail Steamer) as well as SS (Steam Ship).
Additional Links
The Bow of the Titanic (580 Kbytes mpeg).Wreck of the Titanic: Sung by Doc Hopkins (406 Kbytes au format).
The Titanic: Encyclopedia Smithsonian.
The Titanic Disaster: An Enduring Example of Money Management vs. Risk Management.
Titanic Discussion Forum.
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Thank you for the info and pics.
i am looking for information on the crew and passangers who was on the titanic in 1912
i am looking for information on the crew and passangers who was on the titanic in 1912
