Archaeological Investigation and Identification of USS Independence Aircraft Through Telepresence-Enabled Exploration

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Strides Towards Standard Methodologies in Aeronautical Archaeology" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

August 2016 saw the first archaeological survey conducted at the wreck of USS Independence (CVL22), a USN carrier scuttled off California in 1951 following use in atomic testing. A team of experts in nautical archaeology, physics, marine biology and historic aviation worked to document the sunken warship using ROVs. A major goal of the expedition was to assess sonar readings which showed a possible airplane still inside the shipwreck. Investigations confirmed the presence of an aircraft, yet also proved assumptions about its type were incorrect. Employing robust telepresence capabilities, additional specialists consulted from shore to revise the identification of this plane (and parts of two others) while on site. Social media outlets and a streaming webpage allowed nearly 1.5 million viewers to share the experience in real time. This combination of novel technology with an emerging area of study marks some exciting steps forward in underwater archaeology and research collaboration.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020   •
• Strides Towards Standard Methodologies in Aeronautical Archaeology

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 748