The SS United States’ voyage to becoming the world’s largest artificial reef is well underway, and the actual sinking date has been moved forward by a day (to Wednesday 11 November) due to strong winds being forecast for the originally scheduled scuttling day of Thursday 12 November.
The mighty liner, which crossed the Atlantic on its maiden voyage in 1952 in a record-breaking three days, ten hours and 40 minutes – a full ten hours faster than the previous record holder Queen Mary – left Mobile, Alabama, on Monday morning behind a flotilla of tug boats.
According to Okaloosa County, Florida, her final destination will be some 22 nautical miles southwest of Destin, where she is expected to settle in around 55m, with the top decks around the 18m mark, meaning she is within the depth limits of most recreational divers as well as technical enthusiasts.
The funnels, radar mast and stem anchor will be showcased ashore at a future museum celebrating the life of this 305-metre behemoth.
Watch this space for a full report on the enormous amount of prep work that went into getting this gigantic vessel ready for scuttling, and on the actual sinking.
Photo credit: Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners
Source: divernet.com
