I Discuss The Titan Submersible

This was done while revisiting the 2014 documentary Deepsea Challenge, where James Cameron dives to the bottom of the Mariana Trench: 

Yes, the Titan submersible brought me here. Actually, I was one of the few to see this in 3D theatrically back in 2014; honestly, most of this did not need to be in 3D so a 2D watch on YouTube (where currently it’s available for free) is sufficient. Since last Thursday when the “catastrophic implosion” of the Titan was announced, a rabbit hole of sorts was jumped in by me. As a scene here took place at the Titanic wreckage where Cameron used a remote-controlled device to enter the ship… 

At least in the United States this story was a BIG deal for a few days and once you really learn the details, this was quite the tale of hubris and arrogance. I understand wanting to be a pioneer in the field or the excitement of ocean exploration. However, a rich aerospace dude who is “against safety regulations as it stifles creativity” builds a sub in a non-traditional shape using unproven carbon fiber, several different materials combined together, off the shelf components including a Logitech controller, charging an obscene amount of money to the wealthy to explore the Titanic in an experimental craft that on purpose was not regulated… that and many other flagrant problems made it sort of a surprise that a tragedy did not happen sooner.

Thus, it is especially poignant now to see all the hard work and sacrifice that went into creating the Deepsea Challenger submersible—all the practice tests, the failures that occurred during testing, etc. The movie is more about the journey rather than what was seen in the ocean (which wasn’t much). If you understand & accept that, then you’ll appreciate this journey. It even humanizes Cameron-a person who was literally fascinated with exploration and the sea since a child, which also shines in some of his movies-although at times his “at times difficult to work with” style does shine through. 

That said, overall this was a great achievement and at least I can appreciate all the good things that James Cameron has done in the field of oceanography.