Scientists plumbing the Pacific Ocean off the Hawaii coast have discovered a Second World War era Japanese submarine, a technological marvel that had been preparing to attack the Panama Canal before being scuttled by U.S. forces.
The 122-metre "Sen-Toku" class vessel — among the largest pre-nuclear submarines ever built — was found in August off the southwest coast of Oahu and had been missing since 1946, scientists at the University of Hawaii at Manoa said.
The I-400 and its sister ship, the I-401, which was found off Oahu in 2005, were able to travel one and a half times around the world without refuelling and could hold up to three folding-wing bombers that could be launched minutes after resurfacing, the scientists said.
The accidental discovery of the I-400, an aircraft-toting I-400 mega sub, on the rock- and debris-littered ocean floor, some 701 metres beneath the surface, has solved the mystery surrounding a ship long thought to be farther afield.
"We came upon this as we were looking for other targets …. It is like watching a shark at rest," said Jim Delgado, a researcher aboard the Pisces V deep-diving submersible which travelled to the wreckage.
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