50 Underwater Discoveries That Shocked The World
As of now, 71% of the world is covered by water, so it's no wonder that underneath it all there are surprises just waiting to be discovered. That being said, there are explorers who have taken matters into their own hands and who have made some extremely shocking discoveries while diving to the depths of the seas. Some of these discoveries are still a mystery as to how they ended up in the location they were found, but regardless of how they ended up in the deep sea, the news about them being there shocked the world. Check out this gallery if you want to see some underwater discoveries that shocked the world.
Antikythera Mechanism
A shipwreck wielding a piece of technology, the likes of which had never been seen before, was found off the coast of Antikythera, a Greek Island. The discovery of the mechanism left a lot of scientists befuddled as it couldn’t be properly scanned until X-Ray imaging was invented.
This allowed scientists to discover the date the object was invented, and the reason it was invented at all. With the aid of imaging, scientists found that the mechanism was the most ancient kind of analog computer available; it had been used to map and track the planets, the Sun, and the Moon.
Ghost Fleet on Chuuk Lagoon
Chuuk Lagoon is no stranger to the wreckages of planes and ships; the lagoon can be found on the southern fringes of the Pacific Ocean. It used to be an underwater graveyard of sorts for fighters that perished during the Second World War.
The Japanese Imperial Fleet camped in the Chuuk Lagoon during the war, and as a result, a large chunk of the fighters that perished were Japanese Imperial soldiers. The Japanese connection is still glaring in the lagoon today as dozens of machines and aircraft used by the Imperial army can be found in the lagoon.
Cancun Underwater Museum
In 2009, the MUSA underwater museum was created along the Cancun coast of Mexico. This underwater museum is the biggest underwater museum in the world; the immediate area where it was erected is home to statues that were positioned underwater after their construction.
Having the museum underwater has had the effect of making the sculptures mix with sea elements like algae and coral, giving them a natural look even though they’re all man-made. MUSA itself lists the museum’s purpose as one intended to demonstrate how art and environmental science interact as different forms of expression.
Apollo 11 Engines Underwater
An expedition funded and led by Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, in 2013 is the reason the engines that propelled Neil Armstrong to the moon were found after so many decades. The discovery was components of two F-1 rocket engines.
These had been in the Atlantic Ocean for several years before the expedition caused them to be discovered again some days before the moon landing’s anniversary. Among the components discovered was a massive thrust chamber; it has the number 2044, NASA’s serial number for the F-1 engine stenciled in.
The Land Bridge that connects Britain to Europe
Britain is linked to mainland Europe by an area of land known as Doggerland; unfortunately, Doggerland can no longer be used as it now lies submerged beneath the southern region of the North Sea. The British Isles and mainland Europe were connected by this sunken landmass.
Archaeo-geophysics analysis conducted on it estimates that Doggerland sank into the Atlantic Ocean about 8,500 years ago. Numerous research and expeditions have been undertaken to create a better understanding of the lost bridge; scientists have therefore found that the area was populated by mammoths and hunter-gatherers.
Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park
MUSA, the underwater museum that we talked about earlier, is far from being the only underwater art museum around today. The reason is that British sculptor, Jason deCaires Taylor, who was one of the brains behind MUSA, decided to build another underwater museum.
Taylor erected this one off the Grenada coast, West Indies, in the Caribbean Sea. This one actually predates MUSA as it was built three years before MUSA and it is just as creepy as MUSA; the Molinere Underwater museum houses a collection of statues constructed with real-life casts of a nearby community’s members.
Underwater Train Graveyard in New Jersey
If you know where to look, you’ll find loads of decommissioned and abandoned trains in New Jersey. The moss and plant-covered trains can be found in the abandoned train stations and garages in the city; however, the discovery of the underwater train graveyard was first made by Paul Hepler while he was mapping the ocean floor.
Hepler found an 1850s locomotive marked Planet Class 2-2-2 T at about 90 feet below the surface after his equipment detected the presence of metal in the area. Because there’s no official record of the train he found, no one knows why it got abandoned off the New Jersey coast.
Sphinx off the coast of the Bahamas
A sphinx has the wings of a falcon, the head of a man, and the body of a lion; it is a representation of Ra-Horakhty. In 2014, a group of divers exploring the deep seas off the coast of the Bahamas found a limestone sphinx while trying to explore a shipwreck.
The 1.5-ton limestone sphinx they found is believed to have been made from basalt, a type of rock mined in Egypt since 3500 B.C. The sphinx’s Egyptian connection is glaring as researchers believe the structure was a gift from Egyptian sailors of old.
Yonaguni Submarine Ruins
The Yonaguni Submarine Ruins are also known as the Yonaguni Monument, and they can be found on the southern fringes of the Ryuku Islands of Japan. The ruins were discovered in 1986 so they’re not a new discovery by any means but a surprising one nonetheless.
The discovery was made by a group of tourism officials on a visit to see the sharks in the area because the place is known to be home to many sharks. In addition to the sharks, the officials found the Yonaguni Submarine Ruins, and their discovery has had the effect of increasing the area’s appeal as a dive site courtesy of the ruins.
Titanokorys Gainesi
Scientists believe the Titanokorys Gainesi was one of the biggest predators on the planet when it roamed the oceans several million years ago; so far the primitive creature is the largest Cambrian hurdiid radiodont on record.
The animal thrived on the ocean floor in Canada’s tropical area; its body is alien-like, with features that give the impression that the creature is from another planet. The animal’s fossil was found by a group of Canadian Paleontologists who studied it and came to the conclusion that it hunted by lifting its prey into its mouth with its front limbs.
Alien-like Sponge in the Pacific
A mysterious never-before-seen sponge species and genus called Advhena Magnifica was discovered many miles below the surface of the Pacific Ocean. Reports from its discovery describe a creature more like an alien than an Earth creature.
The creature has spots on its body and also an elongated body that mimics the appearance of a beanstalk; just like mythical aliens, it also has spots on its head. The Okeanos Explorer ship was instrumental to the discovery of the alien-like sponge; the creature was found by explorers at a seamount during an expedition aboard the ship.
Tall Reef Structure around the Great Barrier Reef
Apparently, the Great Barrier Reef isn’t the only remarkable reef in its waters; scientists discovered an isolated reef structure while mapping the floor around the Great Barrier Reef. The reef structure they found was measured at 1,640 feet tall, making it a significant discovery on the ocean floor.
The height makes the reef taller than a lot of landmark buildings in the world including the Petronas Twin Towers in Malaysia. The new reef isn’t connected or attached to the Great Barrier Reef; it lies just 40 meters below the surface and is 1.5km wide at its base.
The Submerged City of Baia
The discoveries of submerged cities in the world’s oceans paint pictures of once vibrant cities that have now become submerged below the surface; the submerged city of Baia is one of them. This city can be found outside Naples, roughly 18 miles off the Mediterranean coast.
The area witnessed significant volcanic activities which must have played a role in the city of Baia’s sinking. The 2,000-year-old city now lies about 20 feet below the surface in a remarkably preserved state; its temples, statues, and houses are all intact.
Longest Animal ever Discovered
While exploring a canyon that lies 2,000 feet below the surface of the Indian Ocean, a robot made an unusual find; a 150-foot-long siphonophore that scientists believe is the longest creature ever found. The specimen was discovered by scientists aboard a sea vessel coordinated by a marine research organization.
They were on an expedition to explore the submarine canyons that lie close to Ningaloo off the coast of Western Australia when they made the find. The creature itself is a predatory animal that stings and paralyzes small creatures like fish that it feeds on.
Twilight Zone Reefs in the Chagos Islands
The part of the ocean that is home to mesophotic coral habitats is known as the Twilight Zone. This zone also contains coral reefs that vary in depth; they can be 30m to 150m deep and can be easily identified by the ecosystem’s light dependence.
The creatures there have little choice but to adapt to low light levels in the region; the entire region is quite remote, and as a result, dives were limited to 25m below the surface. Creatures find refuge there, with corals that have distinctive shapes.
Villa Epecuen
Because Villa Epecuen existed above the surface not so long ago, it is one of the youngest sunken cities in the world. It was originally built to serve as a tourist resort on the salty Lake Epecuen’s shores but it now lies beneath the surface.
It can be found roughly 370 miles away from Buenos Aires which used to be a buzzing resort town. All of that changed in 1985 as the Lake Epecuen dam was broken by floods and the area slowly became submerged over the course of about eight years.
Von Damn Vent Field
In 2010, a group of hydrothermal vents made from talc was discovered, and it was named the Von Damn Vent Field. The vents are easy to spot beneath the surface because they rise about 75m above the ocean floor, and they consist of sulfite compounds.
They lie in the portions of the mid-ocean ridge system of the Caribbean sea that has mostly gone unexplored. The combination of the talc mounds and hydrothermal vents creates a condition that allows diverse species of creatures to thrive. Surrounding waters also get an incredible 500 megawatts of energy from the vent field.
Silfra Fissure
Between Iceland’s Thingvellir National Park and the tectonic plates of Eurasia and North America, lies the Silfra Fissure. The fissure was formed in 1979; it is characterized by a crevice that goes 63 meters deep. The fissure itself expands by about 2cm per annum.
It is regarded as the clearest water on Earth courtesy of the presence of fresh water in it. It can be seen from 100m away for this very reason, and because of the squeaky clean water, the area has become a famous diving site.
Carter Seamount
Several seamounts, including the Carter Seamount, are created from dead underwater volcanoes. The Carter Seamount rises from the ocean floor to about 200 meters beneath the surface of the Atlantic; it is surrounded by a lush ecosystem full of organisms like corals and sponges.
Unlike several seamounts like it that haven’t been explored or studied, the Carter Seamount was studied by a team from the University of Bristol in 2013. In the marine ecosystem, seamounts are fairly commonplace; they are usually home to marine animals such as fish, corals, and sponges.
The Lost City of Heracleion
Heracleion is an ancient Egyptian city that was the largest port in the country at one point in history. The city has, however, been submerged for at least 2,000 years and was only recently discovered in the ocean. Heracleion had been vividly described in several medieval texts and inscriptions found in the modern-day.
Despite being in text, its location still remained unknown for a while until the city was found. The submerged city was found by Franck Goddio, a French archaeologist who had explored the waters off the coast of Egypt for many years before finding Heracleion roughly 6.5 kilometers off the Alexandrian coast.
Lake Michigan’s Stonehenge Structure
In 2001, a couple of marine scientists were mapping the Lake Michigan floor and scanning for shipwrecks when they discovered a submerged structure with what appeared to be prehistoric mastodon carvings. The structure was found with a couple of stones in an arrangement reminiscent of Stonehenge.
The boulder was found to be about 5 feet long, and 3.5 to 4 feet high. The team that discovered this underwater mystery was led by Marc Holly, an Underwater Archaeology professor, and Brian Abbott; they put the structure’s age at about 9,000 years and declared it similar to Stonehenge, hence the name.
The Wreck of the SS President Coolidge
It can be argued that the wreck of the SS President Coolidge is the most famous shipwreck in the world; located in Espiritu Santo, the wreck has been one of the most accessible wrecks for years, and it is also home to dozens of diving sites waiting to be explored.
The SS President Coolidge was a luxury steamer with a capacity of over 1,000 passengers; the steamer also served as a troop carrier and it was conveying over 5,000 troops before it sank in 1942. Lots of artifacts can be found in the vicinity of the shipwreck, including the Unicorn porcelain statue.
Lion City ruins in Qiandao Lake
Beneath the calm surface of the Qiandao Lake in the Zhejiang Province of China lies the mysterious ruins of twin ancient cities; the ruins are not a recent discovery by any means as their origin can be traced to the Han and Tand dynasties.
The two ancient cities’ ruins were undisturbed until they were found by divers in 2001. The explorers that made the discovery found different structures including arches, guardian lions, and artifacts that have since been declared historic relics under the protection of the Zhejiang Province.
The Titanic Wreck
The Titanic needs little introduction; an ill-fated luxury liner believed to be unsinkable that sunk during its maiden voyage. Its wreck is located about 690 kilometers south of the coast of Newfoundland where it lies 12,500 feet beneath the surface of the ocean.
The iceberg that collided with the Titanic during its maiden voyage in the North Atlantic effectively ended the myth that the largest man-made movable object was unsinkable. Dr. Robert Ballard led the expedition that found the wreck of the Titanic in 1985; these days, the ship’s iron has become infested with bacteria slowly eating away at its iron.
The Submerged City of Pavlopetri
Pavlopetri is the oldest submerged city in the world; a visit by BBC officials cemented the submerged city’s status. The officials even brought along laser scanners to reproduce models of the many artifacts discovered in the city.
In 1904, the first report on the submerged city was filed when it was reported as an ancient city that had become concealed between the Elafonisos Island and Punta beach; the report was made by a geologist named Fakion Negri. Dr. Nicholas Flemming led the expedition that found the submerged city a couple of decades later.
The Strange Object in the Baltic Sea
A mysterious circular object sent shockwaves around the marine biology world when it was found at the bottom of the Baltic Sea in 2011. To date, the object has continued to confound researchers because the origin of the object and what it really is, still remains a mystery; it was therefore dubbed the Baltic Sea Anomaly as a result.
The strange 61-meter object was found by a team of Swedish treasure hunters led by Captain Peter Linberg; their side-scan sonar aided the discovery as it picked up the submerged object.
Jurassic Microbial Community
A combined team of German and Danish biologists were carrying out a survey of red clay in the Pacific; they analyzed samples by drilling about a hundred feet into the ocean floor. During the drilling and exploration of the Pacific Ocean floor, marine biologists found organisms that can be traced back to the age of dinosaurs.
These primitive creatures breathe slowly but they also use oxygen for respiration. They were found beneath the ocean floor where scientists believe they’ve been for about 70 million years without feeding.
The Wreck of a German Bomber in the English Channel
In the English Channel laid the wreck of a German bomber that was used in the Second World War; this wreck had been submerged in the waters of the English Channel for many years. The German aircraft was a Dornier DO 17 bomber, the only example of it left on the planet.
This particular model earned the flying pencil moniker courtesy of its narrow fuselage. Its wreck was about 60 feet below the surface in the waters off the Kent coast of southeast England; this particular bomber was shot down in 1940 and has remained in a good condition since.
The Wreck of MS Zenobia
In 1980, a Swedish ferry called MS Zenobia sank in the Mediterranean Sea close to Larnaca, Cyprus on its first voyage. MS Zenobia now lies about 138 ft below the surface and has become an underwater attraction for divers.
The wreck’s site is regarded as a top ten wreck site on the planet as a result of the numerous challenges that are present there for divers to engage. The site is home to a 16-meter dive that runs along the starboard of the ship; beyond that, there’s also an advanced dive in the accommodation block of the ship.
The Wreck of the USS Oriskany
The USS Oriskany wreck has led to the formation of what is regarded as the biggest artificial reef in the world; it can be found at the Great Carrier Reef. The USS Oriskany was built for the United States Navy after the Second World War.
It used to be known as the Mighty O while it was in service but then it was decommissioned in 1975 after it had been used in different wars fought in the Pacific during conflicts with the Koreans and Vietnamese people. In 2006, the USS Oriskany was sunk about 24 miles off the coast of Florida.
The Great Blue Hole
The Great Blue Hole is located off the coast of Belize; it is essentially a huge marine sinkhole located close to the middle of the Lighthouse Reef, which lies roughly 43 miles away from Belize City.
The Great Blue Hole is a circular attraction that is 318m wide, goes 124m deep, and covers a 70,650 square-meter surface area. The sea levels weren’t as high back when the hole was formed during quaternary glaciations; it was found that the hole was formed many thousands of years ago after scientists analyzed the hole’s stalactites.
The Uluburun Shipwreck
The Uluburun Shipwreck lies close to the eastern shores of Uluburun in the Mediterranean Sea. The wrecked ship is from another era in time; its origin was traced back to the late 14th Century BC, making it quite ancient.
The man who discovered the wreck is Mehmed Cakir, a local Yalikavak diver who found the wreck in 1982. Despite how ancient the ship is, its wreck site is surrounded by artifacts and the cargo it conveyed. Several copper slabs were discovered around the wreck after a formal expedition to explore the wreck site.
Corsair Plane Wreck
The Vought F4U Corsair aircraft was unfortunate; it ran out of fuel during the Second World War in 1945 and sank. Coincidentally, the aircraft sank in an area where the wrecks of other ships and airplanes can be found and they all combine to form a kind of artificial reef.
The wreck can be found about three miles away from Hawaii Kai marina, on the Southeast side of Oahu. The only way to access the area is by boat; the wreck itself lies about 110 feet below the surface in an area only professional divers are permitted to go.
Loki’s Castle
In between Norway and Greenland lies a field of several active hydrothermal vents in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean; this field can be found 73 degrees north on the ridge that separates Greenland and Norway, and it is known as Loki’s Castle. The castle lies 2,352 meters below the surface.
The vents were discovered with a remotely controlled underwater vehicle in 2008. Loki’s Castle contains five chimneys that sit atop a vast deposit of sulfide minerals; the mineral deposit is 825 feet wide and 300 feet across on top, making it the largest mineral deposit on the seafloor.
San Jose Wreck
In 1968, the Spanish Navy launched a 64-gun three-mastered galleon called San Jose; its service was short-lived as the ship was sunk just off the Cartagena Coast of Colombia in 1968. The Navy ship was laden with numerous precious items like silver, gold, and emerald with a combined estimated value of $17 billion.
The wreck of the 19th-century ship was found by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in 2015; the treasure’s ownership has been contended ever since with multiple countries claiming it belongs to them.
Strange Underwater Formations off the Zakynthos Coast
In 2013, snorkelers were exploring the waters off the coast of Zakynthos when they discovered what they first thought was an ancient Greek city. What they found were formations that lie between six to sixteen feet below the surface; they were assumed to be columns and the remnants of formerly paved roads.
Further investigations revealed that even though the formations and structures bear some similarities with ruins, what they really are is what’s left of a plumbing system located on the ocean floor; mineralization and hydrocarbon seeps have since occurred there.
The Zhemchug Canyon
The largest and deepest submarine canyon on record is the Zhemchug Canyon; it lies right in the middle of the Bering Sea. The canyon goes 2,000 meters deep, making it deeper than the Grand Canyon.
The Zhemchug Canyon is also the largest submarine canyon based on drainage area as it covers 11,350 km of deep, oxygen-rich waters that enter the canyon and provide sustenance to the different life forms and creatures that exist there. Each of the two main branches of the Zhemchug Canyon is larger than regular continental canyons.
The Lost City of Cleopatra
Queen Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Greek Ptolemaic and the last Queen of Egypt; she was only 18 when she became the Queen and she ruled for years until she eventually committed suicide.
After her death, her palace, city, and lighthouse were all thought to be lost forever but Franck Goddio, a French archaeologist, changed that rhetoric when he discovered the remains of the lost city during an exploration of the Antirhodos Island. The Island was found loaded with several ancient artifacts, pottery, statues, and more; about 20,000 objects were found.
2,000 Year Old Medicine
In 1974, the wreck of the Relitto del Pozzino ship was discovered only 18 meters below the surface; it was found on the Baratti Gulf’s seabed. The Relitto del Pozzino ship is an ancient one whose origin has been traced all the way back to 140 BC, so it was an incredible feat to even find the ship’s wreck.
The wreck is about 50 feet long and 10 feet wide; during a recent exploration of the wreck, scientists discovered the most interesting thing; a tin box that contained six flat gray tablets that findings reveal were used as eye medicine a couple of thousands of years ago.
Underwater Brinicles
Brinicles can be found below the surface of sea ice; they are essentially formations that look just like fingers. Although brinicles have been known since the 60s, they have rarely been captured in real-time; the reason for this is because the formations only come to be when specific conditions are created under sea ice.
Brinicles come to be when there are cracks in sea ice and saline water leaks out into surrounding waters. The formations capture numerous creatures like urchins and starfish that call the bottom of the ocean home.
Sunken Pirate City
At the peak of its existence, Port Royal was known for its pirates and killer Kill Devil Rum; at the time, Port Royal was regarded as the most sinful and wicked city in the world. In 1692, the city was hit by a massive earthquake causing numerous residents, buildings, and roads to be sucked into the ground.
At the end of it all, the rest of the city was washed away by a tsunami; since then, Port Royal has become a submerged city that has been explored for years. The famous Captain Morgan was buried in this city, though after the earthquake, his body was mixed with the freshly dead, and his body was lost forever.
Saka Settlement in Lake Issyk-Kul
About 23 meters below the surface in Krygyzstan, a team of Siberian researchers from Tomsk State University found a 2,500-year-old Saka settlement that they believe used to serve as an outpost. The ancient settlement and former outpost was brimming with valuables.
The explorers found about 200 artifacts in it, among them being a piece of what used to be a large ceramic pot that has a stamp that upon closer examination, looks to have been written in Armenian and Syrian scripts. They also found evidence of bronze casting production at the lake bottom.
Elongated Skulls in a Mayan Cave
Sac Uayum is a flooded sinkhole that strikes fear in the local villagers in southern Mexico. Sac Uayum is essentially a cenote that lies in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, which is itself located roughly 40 kilometers south of Merida.
The entire region can be found outside the ruins of the ancient city of Mayapa. A team of archaeologists, led by Bradley Russell, explored the cenote for two weeks before finding two connected chambers there that bore scattered skulls in them. In total, they found about 15 elongated skulls.
Atlit-Yam Submerged Village
Until 7000 BC, Atlit-Yam was a thriving city. The ancient city had within it, a stunning monument; seven half-tonne stones in a semicircular shape arrangement all located around a spring that provided locals with drinking water.
Unfortunately, the city and its monuments now lie 10 meters below the surface as a result of the city becoming submerged when the sea levels rose considerably. The city’s ruins have been remarkably preserved since they became submerged; it is regarded as the most well-preserved ancient settlement on the seafloor today.
13th Century Mongolian Ship Wreck
Off the coast of Takashima Island, in Japan’s Kyushu Island, the wreck of a 13th-century Mongolian ship was discovered. Scientists believe that the discovered ship was one of the 4,000 that the Kublai Khan sent to destroy Japan; they all lie in the ocean now though.
The discovery came with some nice findings as numerous ancient Chinese artifacts, including ancient pottery from the 12th century were found at the wreck site; they paint a vivid picture of how old the ship that bore them really is.
Abandoned Underwater City in the French Riviera
An abandoned underwater city that was built by French filmmakers between 1963 to 1965 now lies roughly 30 meters below the surface of the French Riviera. The intention of the filmmakers that built it was to use the city to shoot some scenes for their L’Enfant et la Sirene movie on a real underwater film set.
Unfortunately, they abandoned the plan altogether because an animation studio in Paris suited the purpose better and was used instead. The newly constructed miniature town was therefore abandoned to the elements and was soon forgotten.
Neptune Memorial Reef
The construction of the Neptune Memorial Reef was inspired by the concept of a lost city; the reef is also called the Atlantis Memorial Reef. The reef lies about 40 feet below the surface and it is located roughly 3 miles off the coast of Miami.
Beyond its lost city concept, the city is quite macabre; it is used as a sort of an underwater cemetery for sea burials while also serving as an artificial reef. The Neptune Memorial Reef has been a popular destination for divers for many years; its 16 acres of territory provides plenty to keep them entertained.
Blackbeard’s Cannon
In October 2011, a group of archaeologists discovered a 300-year-old cannon off the coast of North Carolina. The cannon was traced to the ship of the notorious pirate, Blackbeard; it is an 8-foot gun that was covered in sand and ocean debris known as concretion when it was found.
After the discovery, the archaeologists brought the ancient pirate cannon onshore, from where it was conveyed to an East Carolina University laboratory for further research. The cannon was the most remarkable discovery from Blackbeard’s ship but it wasn’t the only one as other artifacts, including an iron shackle were found.
Ancient Underwater Forest
In the Gulf of Mexico, an ancient underwater forest was discovered roughly sixty feet below the surface; the explorers found trees believed to have died over 50,000 years ago. Researchers believe the dead trees lived for hundreds to thousands of years before they all died out in the end.
The discovery was made by divers who were about 10 miles from shore when their sonar data indicated the presence of between 50 to 100 stumps and logs. The closest relative of the dead trees today is the modern Bald Cypress.