An expedition to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico has uncovered a ship believed to have sunken about the time of the War of 1812, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has reported. The underwater search was prompted by an unusual sonar contact during a 2011 oil and gas survey for the Shell Oil Co. Using underwater robots and high definition cameras, scientists have recovered numerous items from the wrecksite, including anchors, navigation instruments, cannon, and boxes of muskets.
The NOAA-funded 56-day expedition that ended April 29 was exploring poorly known regions of the Gulf, mapping and imaging unknown or little-known features and habitats, developing and testing a method to measure the rate that gas rises from naturally-occurring seeps on the seafloor, and investigating potential shipwreck sites.
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