Director of Maritime Heritage in the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

 

Diving and Documenting the Titanic Wreck Site: What We Are Still Learning

Dr. James P. Delgado has led or participated in shipwreck expeditions around the world. His undersea explorations around the world include a deep sea submersible dive two and half miles down to RMS Titanic, the recent (2010) scientific mapping of the Titanic wreck site, the discoveries of Carpathia, the ship that rescued Titanic’s survivors, and the notorious “ghost ship” Mary Celeste, as well as surveys of USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor, the sunken fleet of atomic-bombed warships at Bikini Atoll, the lost fleet of Mongol emperor Kublai Khan in Japan, the polar exploration ship Maud, wrecked in the Arctic, and the 1846 wreck of the United States naval brig Somers, whose tragic story inspired Herman Melville’s Billy Budd.  His archaeological work has also included the excavation of ships and collapsed buildings along the now-buried waterfront of Gold Rush San Francisco

Currently Director of Maritime Heritage in the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries for the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, Dr. Delgado oversees heritage programs and active research in the nation’s waters, as well as outreach and education on America’s underwater and marine heritage.  Among his duties is administering NOAA’s Congressionally and court-directed oversight of RMS Titanic.  He is also chief scientist for the ongoing archaeological mapping of the Titanic wreck site.  Previously, he served a four-year term as President and CEO of the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, the world’s leading scientific and educational organization dedicated to the understanding of humanity’s seafaring history through the excavation and scientific study of shipwrecks.

A Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and a Fellow of the Explorers’ Club, Delgado is the author or editor of thirty-two books and numerous articles.