Experts Decode the Mystery Behind Missing Remains of the Titanic's Passengers From its Wreckage

Mysteries surrounding the Titanic left people intrigued more than 100 years after it sank in the North Atlantic Ocean. It also became the subject of a hit movie that immortalized the iconic ship in pop culture. Recently, a post on Reddit gained attention, claiming that no human remains or skulls had been found in the Titanic's shipwreck. Even though several explorers dived deep and proposed new theories after examining the wreckage, none of them discovered signs of human remains.

James Cameron, the director of Titanic, who had explored the wreck 33 times and claimed to have spent more time there than the ship's captain, told The New York Times in 2012, "I’ve seen zero human remains. We’ve seen clothing. We’ve seen pairs of shoes, which would strongly suggest a body was there at one point. But we’ve never seen any human remains."

Knewz.com noted that explorers who went 3,800 meters deep into the ocean to examine the Titanic’s hull, discovered wine bottles, shoes, and suitcases scattered on the ocean floor, hinting that people had once traveled on that ship. According to data, around 1,160 people went down with the Titanic, but no bodies were ever found. In addition to that, the ship's remains were deteriorating due to the corrosive effects of salt water, and it was believed that the ship would eventually dissolve almost completely over time.

Deep-sea explorer Robert Ballard explained to NPR , "The issue you have to deal with is, at depths below about 3,000 feet [914 meters], you pass below what's called the calcium carbonate compensation depth. And the water in the deep sea is under-saturated in calcium carbonate, which is mostly, you know, what bones are made of." He added, "For example, on the Titanic and on the Bismarck, those ships are below the calcium carbonate compensation depth, so once the critters eat the flesh and expose the bones, the bones dissolve."

Experts believed that a devastating storm quickly swept away the bodies of those wearing life jackets, and ocean currents had carried them farther away over the years. Others thought the condition of hundreds of bodies trapped within the ship depended on how much they were exposed to oxygenated water and deep-sea scavengers over the years.

William J. Broad told The New York Times , "Decomposition slows if bodies get cut off from the open sea, reducing oxygen levels and scavengers. The interiors of old wrecks have thus yielded bones, teeth, and sometimes whole bodies." He went further to add, "I would not be surprised if highly preserved bodies were found in the engine room. That was deep inside the ship."

Even though bodies had been found in many other wrecks, the Titanic's depth also explained why bones or signs of human life were not discovered.

NOAA's Delgado shared with The Week , "We may never know if bodies or skeletons are still inside the ship. Whether the shoes seen in photos are evidence of human remains on the ocean floor might depend on how you define it." He also explained, "The bodies might have turned into sediment inside the boots and under the coat. As an archaeologist, I would say those are human remains, but explorers like Cameron might just call it mud."