Deep sea explorers have found two Japanese aircraft carriers that were sunk in battle in World War Two.

The carriers were among seven ships that went down in the Battle of Midway, a major air and sea battle fought between the US and Japan in 1942.

One ship, the Kaga, was discovered last week, while wreckage from another carrier, Akagi, was found on Sunday.

Until now only one other ship sunk in this battle had ever been found - the American vessel USS Yorktown, in 1998.

This month's discoveries came after weeks of searching by crew members based on the research vessel Petrel. The vessel is owned by Vulcan Inc, a company created by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.

The crew deployed an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) fitted with sonar, which helped to pinpoint the locations of the Kaga and Akagi.

Both ships were found lying about 18,000 feet (5,490 metres) under water within the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument - the largest marine conservation area in the world.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-50124313





It will be fascinating to see the results of their exploration and investigation .....

But is there a point in doing so?

Yes .....

And that is........?

Maritime archaeology (also known as marine archaeology) is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, shore-side facilities, port-related structures, cargoes, human remains and submerged landscapes. A specialty within maritime archaeology is nautical archaeology, which studies ship construction and use.

As with archaeology as a whole, maritime archaeology can be practised within the historical, industrial, or prehistoric periods. An associated discipline, and again one that lies within archaeology itself, is underwater archaeology, which studies the past through any submerged remains be they of maritime interest or not. An example from the prehistoric era would be the remains of submerged settlements or deposits now lying under water despite having been dry land when sea levels were lower. The study of submerged aircraft lost in lakes, rivers or in the sea is an example from the historical, industrial or modern era. Many specialist sub-disciplines within the broader maritime and underwater archaeological categories have emerged in recent years.

Maritime archaeological sites often result from shipwrecks or sometimes seismic activity, and thus represent a moment in time rather than a slow deposition of material accumulated over a period of years, as is the case with port-related structures (such as piers, wharves, docks and jetties) where objects are lost or thrown off structures over extended periods of time. This fact has led to shipwrecks often being described in the media and in popular accounts as 'time capsules'.

Archaeological material in the sea or in other underwater environments is typically subject to different factors than artifacts on land. However, as with terrestrial archaeology, what survives to be investigated by modern archaeologists can often be a tiny fraction of the material originally deposited. A feature of maritime archaeology is that despite all the material that is lost, there are occasional rare examples of substantial survival, from which a great deal can be learned, due to the difficulties often experienced in accessing the sites.

Will have a proper look at the link later, Omah, but it does sound fascinating. Thank you for posting the details. Are they planning to raise them? I hope not as that would be like disturbing graves.

Both ships were found lying about 18,000 feet (5,490 metres) under water within the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument - the largest marine conservation area in the world.

They are very deep:



Maybe some artefacts will be retrieved but, AFAIK, they will be treated as war graves.