North Atlantic
(Universal Images Group / Getty)
On April 12, 1912, White Star Line’s Olympic-class RMS Titanic sank on her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York with the loss of over 1,500 lives.
This photograph was taken from the deck of the RMS Carpathia, answering the call to rescue survivors sometime between daybreak and 9 a.m. on Monday, April 15, 1912, and reportedly shows the iceberg in question. The Carpathia was en route to the Mediterranean when it was diverted.
Scientific research, using records of ocean drifts together with witness statements, suggests that the iceberg was around 100,000 years old and had originated to the southwest of Greenland. It is likely that at the point of impact with the Titanic, the iceberg was approximately 400 feet long.
‘At a quarter to three I saw what we knew was an iceberg by the light from a star – I saw a streak of light right on the iceberg. From then on till four o’clock we were altering our course very often to avoid the bergs. In the meantime I had been firing rockets and the Company’s signals every time we saw this green light. At five minutes past four I saw the light again, and I was going to pick the boat up on the port bow, but just as it showed the green light I saw an iceberg right ahead of me. It was very close, so I had to put round quick and pick up the boat on the starboard side.’
Testimony of Arthur H. Rostron, Master of the Carpathia, June 21, 1912
