Wreckage of submarine that sank in WWII battle found after 83 years

In a stunning discovery, researchers this week found the wreckage of a British submarine, which is believed to have sunk during World War II, on the coast of Norway.

As per the news release, the wreckage was discovered in the spring of 2023, however, it was identified as HMS Thistle earlier this week. The wreckage was discovered by Norway's Institute of Marine Research and MAREANO, which is a programme that maps seabeds in the waters of the country when on a routine cruise.

The researchers, during the planning of the cruise, observed "strange structures" and established a research location which could help them to take a closer look. Then, the researchers explored the seabed, using an underwater camera and finally found the wreck.

"It is not very often that I am in the video room when new locations are being investigated, but on this particular occasion my curiosity was piqued well before the video rig was submerged in the water," said senior engineer Kjell Bakkeplass, in the press release.

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A video was shared by the Institute of Marine Research which showed the wreck underwater. After looking into the wreckage using the camera, Bakkeplass continued the investigation to identify the submarine.

How did researchers identify the wreckage of HMS Thistle?

After holding discussions with British and Norwegian navies, it "became clear it was a British submarine," stated the Institute of Marine Research, which helped researchers narrow down to two options.

Then, the researchers contacted maritime museums, submarine experts, and other professionals in the field, and found out that the wreckage was "probably" of the HMS Thistle.

When a research cruise was taken by the MAREANO programme in October, they crossed the submarine wreck and successfully identified the wreck.

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"In advance, we knew what characteristics we should look for; thus we were able to identify the wreck as 'Thistle,' but with a small caveat that it is the Royal Navy who is responsible for the final identification," stated cruise leader Kyrre Heldal Kartveit, as reported by CBS News.

On April 10, 1940, the HMS Thistle was sunk by a torpedo, which was launched by a German submarine. All 53 of the crew members present on the ship had died.

The sunken vessel is now called a "war grave," as per the news release because it sank amid the world war. The British Royal Navy has ownership rights over the submarine, which continues to remain 160 metres below the surface of the ocean.

(With inputs from agencies)

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