A trip to see the wreck of the Titanic, which is 3.8 kilometers deep, costs 1.2 million Brazilian riyals, and has a document warning of the “risk of death” | world

On Monday (19) a submerged vehicle that was carrying tourists to the site where the wreck of the Titanic is located disappeared at the bottom of the sea. Next, understand how the Titanic Expeditiona cruise operated by Ocean Gate.

Tour to see the wreck of the Titanic It costs US$250,000 (R$1.19 million) per person. The boat seats up to five people, usually a pilot, and four tourists. However, it is not yet known how many passengers were in the car that disappeared on Monday.

The journey takes ten days, the first two of which are on a large boat that takes passengers to the wreck site. The trail starts off the coast of Newfoundland (map below), in Canada, and travels 600 km across the Atlantic Ocean. Once the submarine is in place, it takes about eight hours to descend to the wreck, which lies at a depth of 3,800 metres.

According to Ocean Gate, 18 expeditions are planned to the wreck site in 2023. The trips were sold after the company was able to make successful dives in 2021 and 2022.

In an interview with the American television network CBS in early 2023, the company’s president, Stockton Rush, stated that tourists who pay for the cruise are passionate about the history of the Titanic or are very wealthy.

In the same CBS report, reporter David Pogue, who was invited to make the trip, reads the terms he had to sign before boarding, including information that the trip took place on an “experimental submarine, which was not approved.” approved by or approved by any regulatory body and could result in physical harm, psychological harm or death.” There is no exact information about what conditions the passengers of the disappeared submarine fell into.

The carbon fiber and titanium vessel is called the Titan and was built exclusively for Ocean Gate. The space is very small, like that of a large car, it has a small area that doubles as a bathroom, and it’s operated by a controller much like a video game console.

In the report shown by CBS, Pogue also describes that “some parts of the submarine seem improvised”. After three attempts on different days (which were canceled for safety reasons) Pogue and the other crew made it to the wreck. (See below report in English)