For several moments, John Geiger could see almost nothing outside the windows of the submersible Alvin. Its lights reached into the dark, opaque water of the Labrador Sea, revealing occasional flashes of marine life but little else.
The vessel had carried the first people to the wreck of the Titanic four decades earlier. This time, it was approaching Quest, the last expedition ship used by Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton. As Alvin moved closer, the ship’s bow gradually became visible through the water.
The dive produced the first close-up images of Quest, showing a wreck 64 years after it sank. Its bow, deck sections, and several portholes remain visible, along with a fallen mast, damaged areas, abandoned fishing nets, and marine life growing across the ship.
“To see Shackleton’s ship, and to think that Shackleton was standing on that deck a century ago. At first, there was a lot of darkness, but suddenly the bow emerges as you are going towards it. It’s incredible,” said Geiger, expedition leader and CEO of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS), in a press release.
Read More: A Weak Hull May Have Sealed the Ship Endurance's Tragic Fate Before It Even Reached Antarctica
First Close-Up Images of Shackleton’s Quest
The RCGS located Quest in June 2024 using side-scan sonar. According to Canadian Geographic, the images showed the vessel resting upright on the seabed, with one of its masts lying beside the wreck.
The team returned to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in July 2026 for a three-day survey. The Falcon remotely operated vehicle recorded the wreck from outside, while Alvin carried expedition members down to see the ship firsthand.
Canadian-made Voyis photogrammetry technology will turn the survey images into a 3D digital twin for future study and public viewing.
“This type of 3D modeling has only existed in ocean science for the last couple of years, and it’s giving us entirely new ways to explore these historic wrecks and make them real for the public,” said Dwight Coleman, co-chief Scientist from WHOI for the expedition in the press release.
Quest Carried Shackleton on His Final Voyage
Shackleton initially intended to take Quest into the Canadian Arctic before redirecting the expedition toward Antarctica in 1921. He was already famous for bringing every member of the Endurance expedition home after their ship was crushed in Antarctic ice.
During a stop at South Georgia in January 1922, Shackleton suffered a fatal heart attack aboard Quest at age 47. The ship was later sold to a Norwegian family and spent roughly four more decades sailing in Arctic waters.
Its career ended on May 5, 1962, when ice floes crushed Quest, causing it to sink.
Ghost Nets Cover a Wreck Filled With Marine Life
Pink corals now spread across parts of Quest, while cod, redfish, and wolffish move around the hull. Expedition members also spotted long strands of what appeared to be soft coral hanging from the bow.
Large abandoned fishing nets cover other sections, obscuring the ship and making it harder to assess the damage beneath them.
“There is a lot of damage to the ship,” said Geiger. “The nets are a sad story, limiting our ability to look at the wreck. I think we have to take responsibility for what we are doing to our oceans, that’s a huge issue.”
Lost or discarded fishing gear can remain underwater for years, continuing to trap animals and damage marine habitats. On Quest, the nets add a modern environmental aspect to a wreck tied to a century of polar exploration.
The digital model will preserve the ship’s condition, the marine life growing across it, and evidence of the human impact that has reached this remote section of seafloor.
“I hope it inspires people to explore the planet and to understand that there are undiscovered wonders to see and experience out there. It really is a magical place, our planet,” said Mark Pathy, chief mission specialist, in the press release.
Read More: In Search of the Endurance Shipwreck, a Hidden Fish Neighborhood Was Found Instead
Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
- This article references information from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society: Expedition captures first images of Ernest Shackleton’s last ship, Quest, in Labrador Sea using cutting-edge technology
- This article references information from Canadian Geographic: RCGS-led expedition to survey two historic shipwrecks: Quest and Terra Nova
