Experts have weighed in on newly released audio from the Titanic submarine disaster.
In June last year, an OceanGate submersible with five people onboard went missing in the Atlantic Ocean, after delving 12,500 feet below sea level to take a trip to see the wreckage of the Titanic.
The sub - called Titan - lost contact with its mother ship less than two hours into the trip. However, as search and rescue missions were quickly dispatched, banging noises were later picked up on by the Canadian Air Force.
Documentary The Titan Sub Disaster: Minute by Minute - set to air across two evenings from 6 to 7 March on Channel 5 - features audio heard by the Canadian Air Force as it searched the waters for signs of the sub.
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The banging was first recorded on 20 June at around 11:30pm picked up by sonar equipment at 30-minute intervals. Some believed it to be a potential sign of life - such as the passenger's knocking in the hopes of attracting attention - however, it was later revealed the Titan had suffered a 'catastrophic implosion' believed to have taken place on 18 June, as it descended into the depths of the sea.
So, what could the detected banging sound actually have been?
At the time, First Coast Guard District Well Captain Jamie Frederick said they didn't know, and Wood Hole Oceanographic Institution's Carl Hartsfield told CBS News: "The ocean is a very complex place, obviously - human sounds, nature sounds, and it’s very difficult to discern what the sources of those noises are at times."
But multiple experts have since weighed in on the sonar's readings.
Other vessels
Founder of maritime search and rescue organisation Marsar International Matthew Schanck told Mail Online while the noise 'could have a number of origins' given the 'subsurface of the ocean is a noisy environment,' he suspects it most likely came from another vessel.
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He explains: "Given the high density of vessels in the area operating their propulsion systems and heavy machinery/equipment in the area, this may have been picked up by sonobuoys."
This includes vessels which were being remotely operated to search for the sub, such as the Polar Prince - a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker later used as a support ship for OceanGate.
Titanic wreck or Titan debris
Schanck also theorised the banging sound could've potentially come from 'loose metal moving around' in the Titanic's wreck.
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He told Insider: "The banging could be something as simple as a piece of that moving in the current or something to do with the wreck itself."
Professor Emeritus of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Syracuse University, Jeff Karson, advised the Mail Online the banging sound could be the result of a 'complicated echo' which was 'bouncing off a bunch of things' under the sea, including the Titanic wreck or even the Titan debris itself.
"It’s like, you know, dropping up a marble into a tin can. It’s rattling around and that would confuse the location," he added.
Marine wildlife
Professor of marine robotics at the University of Sydney Stefan B. Williams believes marine wildlife such as whales could've made the banging sounds.
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Although, many experts resolved the sounds as being 'manmade' opposed to natural or from wildlife.
Ocean noise
Former British Royal Navy commander Chris Parry simply told Talk TV you get 'a lot of mechanical noise in the ocean'.
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He resolved: "Trying to differentiate it from tapping noises is a fool’s errand."
Topics: Titanic, US News, World News