A top-secret US military operation that has yet to be fully declassified was responsible for the discovery of the wreckage of passenger liner RMS Titanic.
American navy officer Robert Ballard revealed all he could on the discovery of the RMS Titanic, saying that the discovery was part of a larger project.
Secret missions and bizarre turns of events led US military officials to happen upon the wreckage of the Titanic, the infamous vessel which sunk on its maiden voyage, killing thousands.
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A total of 1,494 fatalities were recorded after the sinking of the at-the-time world's largest ship, which was set to run from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States.
Its failed voyage and subsequent sinking turned into quite the handy cover story for the US decades later, who were searching for two nuclear submarines.
America's quiet search for two missing nuclear submarines was made a tad easier by the grand cover story of wanting to uncover the wreckage of the Titanic, which they initially had no intention of doing.
Officer Ballard said: "They did not want the world to know that, so I had to have a cover story."
His cover story of attempting to find out the Titanic, in fact, turned out true when Ballard did just that and accidentally discovered the location of the wreckage.
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Ballard, a scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, continued: "We knew where the subs were.
"What they wanted me to do was go back and not have the Russians follow me, because we were interested in the nuclear weapons that were on the Scorpion and also what the nuclear reactors (were) doing to the environment."
In searching for the Titanic, Ballard admits he was "totally oblivious" to what he was doing, and added that the team "naturally were very excited, because it was a tough job. We got it, scoring the winning goal at the buzzer."
But the operation was shrouded in much mystery at the time, with Navy spokesman Capt. Brent Baker at the time saying it was a simple test of an oceanographic system.
Scientist Dr. Robert Spindel, who was head of the Woods Hole Ocean Engineering Department, went on to deny that the military had been involved and said there was "nothing classified" about the salvage mission.
Ballard, however, admitted that this was not the only mission he had been on with the Navy, but could not speak on the others, CNN reported.
Officer Ballard added: "I cannot talk about my other Navy missions, no. They have yet to be declassified."
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