At the turn of November and December we completed another research expedition of Karlsruhe.
No diving this time, electronic equipment only.
The whole operation was supervised by the Inspector of the Maritime Office, and the measurement work performed with MINTAKA I- a Research Vessel.
With the excellent efficiency of the measurement technicians of MEWO company, we used a multibeam sonar system to explore around 4 km2 of the seafloor for three consecutive days whereas ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) spent several hours in the water providing a lot of new footage.
At the end of the expedition, we stood together to observe a moment of silence, silently commemorating the death of 970 German refugees and 6 Soviet airmen. At that point, the whole contemplating atmosphere was enchanted by a rainbow that magically appeared in the sky in that very moment.
Having thoroughly explored the seabed around Karlsruhe, we managed to confirm the presence of the second wreck, only 550 meters away from "our" steamboat. Whether it is a unit related to the events of 13th April, 1945, further research will prove.
Just as we had assumed, a lot of equipment was spilled around the wreck, especially in front of her bow.
At the bottom of the sea, we came across 10 chests and plenty of other bits and pieces.
Some of the chests were open. The one with special rubber gaskets gives hope that these might be valuable objects- maybe paintings?
Our underwater robot (ROV) was not able to clearly determine the contents of the other remaining chests.
That's probably all for this year, we are coming back to the wreck of Karlsruhe in spring 2021
