The French institute Ifremer has diverted its ship Atalante, equipped with an underwater robot for great depths, to the North Atlantic site where a submarine visiting the wreck of the Titanic disappeared, the secretary announced on Tuesday. of State in charge of the Sea.
The Atalante, on a mission, should arrive in the area on Wednesday around 8:00 p.m. French time (6:00 p.m. GMT), according to Hervé Berville, before French operators dive the Victor 6000 robot towards the wreckage, which is nearly 4,000 meters away. of funds.
Disappeared since Sunday
The American exploration submarine Titan has been missing since diving in the North Atlantic on Sunday for a visit to the wreck of the Titanic. It has five crew members and has a theoretical autonomy of 96 hours in diving.
Qualified as a “flagship submarine intervention vehicle” by Ifremer, Victor 6000 is a remotely operated robot from the Atalante, using an umbilical cord reaching eight kilometers. He is qualified to work in deep seas up to 6,000 meters, with a battery of observation equipment and manipulation and sampling of sediments or fauna.
In connection with the American authorities
“The device will continue in connection with the NATO coordination center and we are in contact with the American authorities”, indicated Hervé Berville, specifying that the operators of the robot had left Toulon and would arrive in Newfoundland at Canada, from Wednesday morning, French time, before joining Atalante.
The French Research Institute for the Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer) is under the dual supervision of the Ministries of the Sea and of Research.