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3-D sonar provides new view of Civil War shipwreck
by Michael Graczyk
This 2012 high-resolution 3-D sonar image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows the remains of the USS Hatteras, the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in combat in the Gulf of Mexico during the Civil War. The image shows the ship's stern and rudder to the right, the paddlewheel shaft, engine machinery and one of the paddlewheels. (AP Photo/NOAA, Northwest Hydro Inc., James Glaeser)
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This 2012 high-resolution 3-D sonar image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows the remains of the USS Hatteras, the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in combat in the Gulf of Mexico during the Civil War. The image shows the ship's stern and rudder to the right, the paddlewheel shaft, engine machinery and one of the paddlewheels. (AP Photo/NOAA, Northwest Hydro Inc., James Glaeser)
The remains of the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in combat in the Gulf of Mexico during the Civil War can now be seen in high-resolution, 3-D sonar images from the Gulf's murky depths.
The USS Hatteras images are being released this month to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the battle where the 210-foot ship was lost about 20 miles from Galveston. They show previously unknown details like a paddle wheel, the stern and rudder—and a shell hole that may have been among the ship's fatal wounds.
This image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows a view of the USS Hatteras as it fought and sank in 1863, depicted in a drawing by Civil War artist Francis H. Schell, above a 2012 high-resolution 3-D sonar image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A team of archaeologists and technicians spent two days in September 2012 mapping the wreckage of the USS Hatteras, the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in the Gulf of Mexico during Civil War combat. (AP Photo/NOAA, Northwest Hydro Inc., James Glaeser)
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This image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows a view of the USS Hatteras as it fought and sank in 1863, depicted in a drawing by Civil War artist Francis H. Schell, above a 2012 high-resolution 3-D sonar image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A team of archaeologists and technicians spent two days in September 2012 mapping the wreckage of the USS Hatteras, the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in the Gulf of Mexico during Civil War combat. (AP Photo/NOAA, Northwest Hydro Inc., James Glaeser)
Archaeologists and technicians spent two days last September mapping the wreckage with sonar imaging technology.
This 2012 high-resolution 3-D sonar image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows the remains of the USS Hatteras, the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in combat in the Gulf of Mexico during the Civil War. The view is from the vessel's port side, toward its stern. The long paddlewheel shaft, bent and angled, rests on the seabed with the fragmented remains of the port side paddlewheel on the right. (AP Photo/NOAA, Northwest Hydro Inc., James Glaeser)
× close
This 2012 high-resolution 3-D sonar image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows the remains of the USS Hatteras, the only U.S. Navy ship sunk in combat in the Gulf of Mexico during the Civil War. The view is from the vessel's port side, toward its stern. The long paddlewheel shaft, bent and angled, rests on the seabed with the fragmented remains of the port side paddlewheel on the right. (AP Photo/NOAA, Northwest Hydro Inc., James Glaeser)