On April 14, 1912, the RMS Titanic was moving through the North Atlantic at close to full operating speed, despite multiple ice warnings received earlier that day.
The ship was under the command of Edward Smith, a highly experienced captain nearing the end of his career. Nothing about the situation seemed urgent enough to demand a major change. Transatlantic liners were expected to maintain speed, and it was said that the Titanic’s design was such that it was able to cover more distance in a shorter time.
It was widely described as “The Unsinkable Ship.” Purely because, unlike other ships of the time, it was capable of staying afloat even if up to four of its compartments got flooded.
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The Moment the Iceberg Was Seen
At 11:40 PM, the lookout, Frederick Fleet, spotted an iceberg ahead.
The message reached the bridge, where the first officer, William McMaster Murdoch, responded to Frederick Fleet’s call. His actions were immediate:
- Hard turn to avoid the iceberg
- Engines reversed
These were standard emergency responses. And at first, it felt that the correct decision had been made as the ship steered away from the iceberg. But William Murdoch had no way of knowing about a part of the iceberg that was jutting out, causing the ship to brush against it.
What Passengers Actually Felt
Since the Titanic did not crash into the iceberg, there was no crash. The survivors of the Titanic described feeling a faint vibration.
Which is why most of the people on board did not treat it as a disaster.
What Happened Below the Waterline
The iceberg made contact along a stretch of the hull, placing stress on multiple points. Instead of one large hole, there were a series of small openings created along the ship’s side.
In freezing temperatures, the steel used in the hull became less flexible. Under stress, it was more likely to fracture than bend. Rivets holding the steel plates in place loosened or failed, allowing seams to open.
Individually, none of these breaches seemed large. Together, they became catastrophic.
A Design That Led To Progressive Flooding
The Titanic was built with watertight compartments, a feature that contributed to its reputation for safety. The idea was straightforward: if one part of the ship flooded, the rest could remain intact.
And under other conditions, this design would have worked.
The ship could stay afloat if up to four compartments were breached.
That night, at least five compartments were compromised.
There was another limitation. The walls between compartments did not extend all the way up. As water filled the front sections, it began to spill over into the next ones, like liquid moving across a series of connected containers.
As water entered the forward compartments, the bow of the ship began to dip. This shift changed the balance of the entire structure.
Once the angle increased, water flowed more easily from one compartment to the next.
This is what’s known as progressive flooding.
As the bow sank deeper, the stern lifted out of the water. This placed enormous stress on the ship’s structure.
Ships are not designed to support themselves in this position for long. The forces acting on the hull became uneven and extreme.
Eventually, the structure gave way. The Titanic broke apart and sank.
