Applied Systems Engineering Can Help See Into Non-Contiguous Debris Zones With New Eyes

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Finding the lost ships of Tristan de Luna’s fleet is a high-priority historical challenge. Florida archaeologists discovered three of the lost ships in Pensacola Bay. Applied systems engineering can help see into non-contiguous debris zones with new eyes. A 1559 hurricane destroyed ships associated with Pensacola’s first settlement. Three ships were found in bay (1992-2016) near downtown Pensacola. The others were reported to have run aground, wrecked on sandbar, or landed intact ashore. Pensacola Bay has thirty miles of shoreline and hosted lumber and brick industries. Applied systems engineering can reconcile physics-based assumptions, topography, and mass analytics. Conservation of Mass predicates that ballast, any high-density cargo, and some wood will not disappear. Topographical clues from historical record describe several discernible land or water features. Wood debris is relatable to time. Physics-based clues in littoral zone, consistent with record, can illuminate areas for further study. Non-contiguous debris zones are contaminated by lumber and brick industries. Carbon 14 is radioactive isotope used to determine time since tree was alive. Mass analytics complement wood genus identification using C14 radiocarbon dating. Wood dates older than 460 years before present may correlate to shipwreck. Results forthcoming of analyses of driftwood collected from possible shipwreck area.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 38885.0