NOAA Titanic 2004 Expedition Oceanographic and Archaeological Data

NOAA's 2004 Titanic Expedition aboard the Ronald H. Brown collected scientific data on the wreck's deterioration from May 27 to June 12. The mission utilized high-definition video and stereoscopic still images from remotely operated vehicles for a non-invasive assessment. The dataset serves as a baseline for studying deep-water shipwreck processes.

Use Cases

• Analyzing microbial deterioration patterns of iron hulls through rusticle formation studies.
• Creating high-resolution maps of the Titanic wreck site using stereoscopic imagery.
• Establishing a scientific baseline for comparing deterioration rates of other deep-water shipwrecks.
• Documenting archaeological site changes since the 1985 discovery using non-invasive ROV surveys.

Strengths

• Data collection employed sophisticated ROV-based high-definition video and stereoscopic imaging not available in the 1980s.
• Expedition involved a multi-institutional science team over an 11-day focused mission at the site.
• The dataset provides a documented baseline for measuring long-term shipwreck deterioration processes.

Limitations

• Core dataset metrics like row count, column names, and file size are unknown across all platforms.
• Conflicting last update dates exist: Data.gov lists 2026-04-01, while NASA Earthdata lists 2004-06-12.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Remotely operated vehicle (ROV) surveys aboard NOAA Ship Ronald H. Brown, utilizing high-definition video and stereoscopic still images.

Time Range

2004-05-27 to 2004-06-12

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:29:14.824746

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean, Titanic wreck site