TITANIC
Possible factors in the sinking
It is well established that the sinking of Titanic was the result of an iceberg collision, which fatally punctured the ship's five forwardmost watertight compartments. Less obvious, however, are the reasons for the collision itself (which occurred on a clear night, and after the ship had received numerous ice warnings), the factors underlying the sheer extent of the damage sustained by the ship, and the reasons for the extreme loss of life.
Construction and metallurgy
Originally, historians thought the iceberg had cut a gash into Titanic's hull. Since the part of the ship that the iceberg damaged is now buried, scientists used sonar to examine the area and discovered the iceberg had caused the hull to buckle, allowing water to enter Titanic between her steel plates.
The steel plate used for Titanic's hull was of 1 to 1½ inch (2.5 to 3.8 cm) thickness. A detailed analysis of small pieces of the steel plating from Titanic found that it was of a metallurgy that loses its ductility and becomes brittle in cold or icy water, leaving it vulnerable to dent-induced ruptures. The pieces of steel were found to have very high content of phosphorus and sulphur (4× and 2× respectively, compared with modern steel), with manganese-sulphur ratio of 6.8:1 (compared with over 200:1 ratio for modern steels). High content of phosphorus initiates fractures, sulphur forms grains of iron sulphide that facilitate propagation of cracks, and lack of manganese makes the steel less ductile. The recovered samples were found to be undergoing ductile-brittle transition in temperatures of 90 °F (32 °C) for longitudinal samples and 133 °F (56 °C) for transversal samples, compared with transition temperature of −17 °F (−27 °C) common for modern steels: modern steel would only become so brittle in between −76 °F and −94 °F (−60 °C and −70 °C). Titanic's steel, although "probably the best plain carbon ship plate available at the time", was thus unsuitable for use at low temperatures. The anisotropy was probably caused by hot rolling influencing the orientation of the sulphide stringer inclusions. The steel plate for Titanic was supplied by David Colville & Sons using acid-lined, open hearth furnaces at their Dalzell Steel and Iron Works in Motherwell near Glasgow, which would explain the high content of phosphorus and sulphur, even for the time. But it seems highly probable that this brittle steel sample used for the analysis above was not all representative for the ship as it was a fractured part out of the debris field, probably making it a "self-selected" sample of worst quality. Newer analysis, using slow bend tests on six hull samples at room temperature and at 0 °C (32 °F), suggest that Titanic's hull steel was by no means a brittle material, even at ice-brine temperatures.
Another factor was the rivets holding the hull together, several of which were much more fragile than once thought. The major part of Titanic's hull was held together by steel rivets which were installed by a hydraulic riveting machine. At the bow and the stern this machine could not be used. There, the stresses were expected to be much lower than at the central hull, thus the use of wrought iron rivets (which could be easier installed by hand) was sufficient. 48 out of the millions of rivets holding the Titanic together were recovered from the wreck site, six of which were identified as hull rivets. While the mild steel rivets were of proper quality, the scientists found many of the wrought iron rivets to be riddled with high concentrations of slag. A glassy residue of smelting, slag can make rivets brittle and prone to fracture. Records from the archive of the builder show that the ship's builder ordered No. 3 iron bar, known as "best"—not No. 4, known as "best-best", as material for the wrought iron rivets, although shipbuilders at that time typically used No. 4 iron for such rivets. Rivets of "best best" iron had a tensile strength of approximately 80% of steel's; "best" iron was only around 73%. Despite this, the most extensive and finally fatal damage the Titanic sustained, at boiler rooms No. 5 and 6, was done in an area where steel rivets were used.
Rudder construction and turning ability
Although Titanic's rudder met the mandated dimensional requirements for a ship her size, the rudder's design might not have reflected contemporary design standards. According to research by BBC History: "Her stern, with its high graceful counter and long thin rudder, was an exact copy of an 18th-century sailing ship... a perfect example of the lack of technical development. Compared with the rudder design of the Cunarders, Titanic's was a fraction of the size. No account was made for advances in scale and little thought was given to how a ship, 852 feet [sic] in length might turn in an emergency or avoid collision with an iceberg. This was Titanic's Achilles heel." In fact, far from being an ill-considered copy of a traditional design, the tall rudder shape was more effective at the vessel's designed cruising speed; short, square rudders are more suitable for low-speed manoeuvring. Compared with the modern legal standard—which requires rudder areas to be within a range of 1.5% and 5% of the hull's underwater profile—Titanic's rudder was at the low end of the range at 1.9%, but this configuration has been shown to be more effective because it provides better laminar flow of water. During World War One, the Olympic—a "most manoeuvrable and responsive ship"—fitted with the same semi-oval rudder as Titanic was able to turn quickly to avoid an enemy submarine, then chase it down and ram and sink it.
Possibly contributing to the disaster was Titanic's triple-screw engine configuration, which had reversible reciprocating steam engines driving the two outboard propellers, and a non-reversible steam turbine driving the centre propeller. According to Fourth Officer Joseph Boxhall, who came onto the bridge just after the collision, First Officer Murdoch had set the engine room telegraph to reverse the engines to avoid the iceberg,[56] but because the centre turbine could not reverse during the "full speed astern" manoeuvre, it and the centre propeller, positioned directly forward of the ship's rudder, were simply stopped. This greatly reduced the rudder's effectiveness, thus handicapping the turning ability of the ship. Had Murdoch simply turned the ship while maintaining her forward speed, Titanic might have missed the iceberg with metres to spare. Another survivor, engine room worker Frederick Scott, gave contrary evidence, recalling that at his station in the engine room all four sets of telegraphs had changed to "Stop", but not until after the collision.
Orientation of impact
It has been speculated that the ship could have been saved if she had rammed the iceberg head on. It is hypothesised that if Titanic had not altered her course at all and instead collided head first with the iceberg, the impact would have been taken by the naturally stronger bow and damage would have affected only one or two forward compartments. This would have disabled her, and possibly caused casualties among the passengers near the bow, but probably would not have resulted in sinking since Titanic was designed to float with the first four compartments flooded. Instead, the glancing blow to the starboard side caused buckling in the hull plates of the first six compartments; more than the ship's designers had anticipated.
Weather
The weather for the Atlantic at the time of the collision was unusual because there was a flat calm sea, without wind or swell. In addition, it was a moonless night. Under normal sea conditions in the area of the collision, waves would have broken over the base of an iceberg, assisting in the location of icebergs even on a moonless night. The temperature dropped from about 43° Fahrenheit (6° Celsius) to near freezing, giving difficulty for the lookouts. The northwest winds behind the front helped to steer a giant ice field toward the ships.
Excessive speed
The conclusion of the British Inquiry into the sinking was “that the loss of the said ship was due to collision with an iceberg, brought about by the excessive speed at which the ship was being navigated”. At the time of the collision it is thought that Titanic was at her normal cruising speed of about 21 knots (39 km/h), which was less than her top speed of around 23 knots (43 km/h). At the time it was common (but not universal) practice to maintain normal speed in areas where icebergs were expected. It was thought that any iceberg large enough to damage the ship would be seen in sufficient time to be avoided. It is often alleged that J. Bruce Ismay instructed or encouraged Captain Smith to increase speed in order to make an early landfall, and it is a common feature in popular representations of the disaster, such as the 1997 film, Titanic. There is little evidence for this having happened, and it is disputed by many.
David Sarnoff, wireless reports and the use of SOS
An often-quoted story that has been blurred between fact and fiction states that the first person to receive news of the sinking was David Sarnoff, who would later lead media giant RCA. In modified versions of this legend, Sarnoff was not the first to hear the news (though Sarnoff willingly promoted this notion), but he and others did staff the Marconi wireless station (telegraph) atop the Wanamaker Department Store in New York City, and for three days, relayed news of the disaster and names of survivors to people waiting outside. However, even this version lacks support in contemporary accounts. No newspapers of the time, for example, mention Sarnoff. Given the absence of primary evidence, the story of Sarnoff should be properly regarded as a legend.
Despite popular belief, the sinking of Titanic was not the first time the internationally recognised Morse code distress signal "SOS" was used. The SOS signal was first proposed at the International Conference on Wireless Communication at Sea in Berlin in 1906. It was ratified by the international community in 1908 and had been in widespread use since then. The SOS signal was, however, rarely used by British wireless operators, who preferred the older CQD code. First Wireless Operator Jack Phillips began transmitting CQD until Second Wireless Operator Harold Bride half jokingly suggested, "Send SOS; it's the new call, and this may be your last chance to send it." Phillips then began to intersperse SOS with the traditional CQD call.
Titanic's band
One of the most famous stories of Titanic is of the ship's band. On 15 April the eight-member band, led by Wallace Hartley, had assembled in the first-class lounge in an effort to keep passengers calm and upbeat. Later they moved on to the forward half of the boat deck. The band continued playing, even when it became apparent the ship was going to sink, and all members perished. Two of the members of the Titanic's band were devout Methodist Christians.
There has been much speculation about what their last song was. A first-class Canadian passenger, Mrs. Vera Dick, and several other passengers, alleged that the final tune played was that of the hymn "Nearer, My God, to Thee". Hartley reportedly once said to a friend if he were on a sinking ship, "Nearer, My God, to Thee" would be one of the songs he would play. But Walter Lord's book A Night to Remember popularised wireless operator Harold Bride's 1912 account (New York Times) that he heard the song "Autumn" before the ship sank. It is considered Bride either meant the hymn tune known as "Autumn" or the tune of the then-popular waltz "Songe d'Automne" but neither were in the White Star Line songbook for the band. Bride is the only witness who was close enough to the band, as he floated off the deck before the ship went down, some consider to be reliable — Mrs. Dick had left by lifeboat an hour and 20 minutes earlier and could not possibly have heard the band's final moments. The notion that the band played "Nearer, My God, to Thee" as a swan song is possibly a myth originating from the wrecking of SS Valencia, which had received wide press coverage in Canada in 1906 and so may have influenced Mrs. Dick's recollection. Also, there are two, very different, musical settings for "Nearer, My God, to Thee": one is popular in Britain, and the other is popular in the U.S., and the British melody might sound like the other hymn ("Autumn").[citation needed] The film A Night to Remember (1958) uses the British setting; while the 1953 film Titanic, with Clifton Webb, uses the American tune.[citation needed] Recently, a third possibility has been raised. Among items left behind by Hartley's fiancee, Maria Robinson, was the sheet music of a third tune to the hymn written by Lewis Carey in 1902 and made popular by the Australian contralto Ada Crossley. As Crossley performed in both Britain and America, it is possible that this may have been a tune known to passengers on both sides of the Atlantic.
Iceberg
Four days into her journey, on the night of 14th April Titanic struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic and was so badly damaged that she survived for less than three hours before she sank. Two thirds of Titanic’s passengers and crew were lost because there were not enough lifeboats to rescue everyone on board.Survivors were picked up from the lifeboats by the Carpathia and taken to New York. Over 1500 people drowned.
Iceberg
Between November 1911 and Titanic’s maiden voyage, twenty sailing craft from 100 to 300 tons had gone to the bottom off the shores of Newfoundland. It was a hard winter and in spring there was an unusually dense drift of ice past the island: over a thousand bergs moving as far south as the Grand Banks and into the shipping lanes. But as Richard Brown remarks: “There has only been one iceberg, and its history lasted for a minute”.
Iceberg Warnings
Titanic was well warned of iceberg activity in her path: a cargo boat steaming in the opposite direction radioed a warning as it passed the giant liner on Saturday evening, April 13th. Around lunchtime the next day, Captain Smith acknowledged a message from Baltic, a fellow White Star liner, relaying a warning of large quantities of field ice observed by a Greek steamer. There was a message early on Sunday evening from Captain Lord of Californian, of the Leyland Line, to the Captain of Antillian locating three large bergs five miles south of the Leyland vessel. It was intercepted by Titanic before it was sent directly to the ship, which acknowledged it. However, a darker warning from Mesaba a couple of hours later, concerning heavy pack ice and many icebergs, was probably not delivered to a Titanic officer, and the message from Californian at 11.00p.m. reporting that she was stopped amidst ice was not relayed to the bridge of Titanic. It was not the Marconi operators’ job to do so.
Hitting the Iceberg
Seconds too late, the two lookouts in Titanic’s crow’s-nest reported an iceberg dead ahead at 11.40pm. The liner swerved but too late to escape what seemed at first to be a close shave, then a glancing blow, and after Thomas Andrews’ expert inspection below, a serious collision whose effects he told Captain Smith would sink the ship within hours. The collision was heard and felt by passengers and crew variously as a grinding jar, a heavy wave, a rolling over a thousand marbles and the tearing of a long strip of calico. The iceberg slid past into the darkness and distance, but Titanic’s fate was already sealed.
Deafening Silence
It was not the collision but the silence when Titanic’s engines were stopped which alerted those passengers still awake to the fact that something was amiss. A sudden panic did not break out, probably because passengers felt they were in a floating town on a calm sea on a starry night. But the ship was holed and down below, the sea was pouring in and boiler rooms were under threat.
Before long, telegraphs were ringing, watertight doors were coming down, the firemen and engineers were struggling to keep the steam pressure up, the pumps working and the lights lit. Captain Smith sent for Thomas Andrews who went below to inspect the damage. His verdict was as chilling as the night around them. The ship could not keep afloat for more than a couple of hours.
A Grave Situation
Time passed before passengers realised the seriousness of the situation and their holiday appearance - dressed in pyjamas or kimonos, tuxedos or evening gowns, or carpet slippers – added to the unreality of the scene, “like a play that was being enacted for entertainment,” as one survivor recalled. But it became deadly serious when the lifeboats were lowered, filled with women and children, or half-filled, as investigation later proved, and sometimes with men instead of women.
Panic
There was later evidence of panic on board and of some incompetence among the crew. Meanwhile, wireless messages of distress were sent out repeatedly from the Marconi shack, CQD, the general distress call and then the newly adopted SOS (Save Our Souls). They make poignant reading. The messages went on from a quarter past midnight, April 15th until 2.17.a.m. when Virginian heard Titanic call CQD and replied, but apparently to thin air. At 1.40a.m. Olympic had messaged from 500 miles away: “Am lighting up all possible boilers as fast as can”. But it was too late. Those in the lifeboats watched the ship tip and tilt, hang vertical and motionless for several minutes, her immense stern upright against the sky, then slide under until she vanished. Titanic foundered at 2.20a.m.
Titanic Rescue
Many of the women and children were taken off in Titanic’s lifeboats in an atmosphere of confusion and panic. After the disaster there was controversy about who had been allowed or disallowed access to the lifeboats. When the last boats had gone, some of them less than half full, it was “every man for himself”. There were daring or lucky escapes by some of the passengers who were left to fend for themselves. Saving your own life required bravery, initiative and the strength to dive and swim in freezing water.
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