Long Lost Ship Discovery Helps Put Franklin Expedition To Rest

More than a century ago, two British ships took off to explore the Arctic with a total of 129 men, seeking to chart the Northwest Passage. Unfortunately, both ships disappeared with all on-board, and for the past several years, the Canadian government has been searching for the ships' remains. Today it announced that one has been located.

The Canadian government's search has been part of an effort to demonstrate sovereign control over the passage, which — previously unusable and filled with ice — has now become open to shipping because of climate change and the melting of that ice.

The search has been carried on since 2008, and though one ship is still lost, sonar has discovered the remains of one ship in the Victoria Strait. Which ship was discovered hasn't been stated, but the Canadian government is optimistic this will lead to the discovery of the other vessel.

British archaeologist William Battersby has said that the sonar images indicate "a huge amount of evidence will be preserved from the expedition" — maybe, he says, even remains of the crew and possessions like photographs. He says this is "the biggest archaeological discovery the world has seen since the opening of Tutankhamun's tomb."

SOURCE: BBC