Last week, the submarine Titan imploded as it descended to explore the wreck of the Titanic, killing all five passengers. Many are now wondering what caused the implosion and why the Titanic didn’t suffer the same fate by sinking. First, let’s look at why implosions occur. Implosions are the result of a difference between internal and external pressure. “When a submersible is deep in the ocean, it experiences force on its surface due to the pressure of the water“explained Arun Bansil, professor of physics at Northeastern University in a article for Northeastern Global News. “When this pressure becomes greater than the force the hull can handle, the ship violently implodes.”
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Implosions can also occur on the surface as long as there is lower pressure inside an object than outside, such as by removing air inside a tank to create a vacuum. So why did Titan implode but Titanic didn’t? Parts of the Titanic imploded, while others did not. The stern section of the Titanic is probably already imploded at about 60 meters below the surface. The parts that did not implode avoided this destructive event as the air was released from inside, causing the pressure to be equal outside and inside (conditions under which implosion does not occur). Enough of the ship avoided this implosion, leaving it partially “intact”.