The article shares 10 incredible facts about the Titanic, a ship that sank over 100 years ago but still holds a significant place in modern humanity's collective memory. Some of the facts include:
1. John Jacob Astor IV, a wealthy businessman, was on board and had a net worth equivalent to $2.3 billion in today's money.
2. Violet Jessop, a British nurse, survived the Titanic's sinking and also survived the sinking of its sister ship, the Britannic.
3. James Cameron's 1997 film "Titanic" was the highest-grossing film of all time, with a budget of $200 million, which is equivalent to $360 million today.
4. The wreckage of the Titanic was discovered in 1985 by a joint American-French expedition led by oceanographer Dr. Robert Ballard.
5. The Titanic was a massive ship, with a length of 883 feet, and it took 20 horses to transport its anchor.
6. Only 32% of male first-class passengers survived, compared to 97% of female first-class passengers.
7. Eliza Gladys Millvina Dean was the last survivor of the Titanic, passing away in 2009 at the age of 97.
8. The Titanic received six iceberg warnings before colliding with the iceberg that sank it.
9. The ship's lookout, Frederick Fleet, first spotted the iceberg and sounded the alarm, but the ship's speed and the calm waters made it difficult to avoid the collision.
10. The sinking of the Titanic was initially reported as a minor incident, with many newspapers claiming that all passengers were safe, which gave false hope to families of those on board.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The Titanic had many rich passengers due to its notoriety as an "unsinkable ship."
2. John Jacob Astor, an American businessman, was the richest man on board and possibly the richest living man at the time.
3. Astor's worth at the time of his death was $87 million, equivalent to $2.3 billion when adjusted for inflation.
4. Astor was a decorated military veteran and wrote a popular science fiction novel called "A Journey in Other Worlds."
5. Astor made millions in real estate and built the Astoria Hotel in New York City in 1897.
6. Violet Jessop was a British nurse who survived the Titanic's sinking, as well as the sinking of the Britannic, the Titanic's sister ship.
7. Jessop was one of the few people to survive both disasters, and she also survived a collision on the RMS Olympic, another sister ship.
8. The Titanic was found in 1985 by a joint American-French expedition led by oceanographer Dr. Robert Ballard.
9. The Titanic was discovered over two miles below the ocean's surface using an unmanned submersible called Argo.
10. The Titanic's wreckage was found as part of a secret United States Navy investigation of two wrecked nuclear submarines.
11. The Titanic's sinking was predicted in a 1898 science fiction novel called "Futility, or the Wreck of the Titan" by Morgan Robertson.
12. The Titanic was the largest ship in the world at the time of its construction, measuring 883 feet long.
13. The Titanic burned 825 tons of coal a day and used over 10,000 light bulbs.
14. The Titanic's anchor was so heavy that it took 20 horses to transport it.
15. The Titanic had a maximum capacity of 3,500 passengers, but only about 2,300 were on board when it sank.
16. There were 13 honeymooning couples on board the Titanic.
17. Each lifeboat had a capacity of 65 people, but only 28 people were on the first boat.
18. The Titanic was equipped to carry 65 lifeboats, but only had 20 on board.
19. The Titanic received six iceberg warnings before colliding with the iceberg.
20. Only 31% of passengers survived the Titanic's sinking, but 53% could have survived if the ship was properly prepared.
21. The Titanic's survival rate was 74% for women and 20% for men.
22. The Titanic's wreckage is located 12,600 feet below sea level.
23. The Titanic was the largest ship in the world for its time, but was surpassed by the Queen Mary in 1934.
24. The current largest ship in the world is the Symphony of the Seas, which is over 1,000 feet longer than the Titanic.
25. Frederick Fleet, a British lookout, was the first to spot the iceberg that sank the Titanic.
26. Fleet and fellow lookout Reginald Lee were stationed in the crow's nest of the Titanic.
27. The ocean was unusually calm on the night of the Titanic's sinking, making it difficult to spot the iceberg.
28. The crow's nest binoculars were missing, which might have helped Fleet and Lee spot the iceberg earlier.
29. Fleet later attested that if they had binoculars, they could have saved the ship.
30. The Titanic disaster was initially reported as having no casualties, which gave false hope to the families of the passengers.
31. The first reports of the Titanic's sinking were incorrect, with some newspapers stating that all passengers were safe or that the ship didn't sink.