Page 24. MAINE COASTAL NEWS January 2011 UNITED STATES NAVY NEWS Continued from Page 21.


including the Sunken Military Craft Act, which prohibits removal of artifacts and any alteration or disruption of the wreck site. Alberg said this year’s Battle of the Atlantic expedition continues work con- ducted by NOAA’s Office of National Ma- rine Sanctuaries and the Maritime Heritage Program in 2008 to document and preserve historic shipwrecks lost during World War II. The wrecks of three sunken U-boats were the focus of last summer’s expedition. The project is also dedicated to raising public awareness about our nation’s maritime heri- tage.


The Battle of the Atlantic expedition was conducted in consultation with the British and German governments and with technical expertise and logistical support from NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal and Ocean Science, the Minerals Management Service, the National Park Service, the State of North Carolina, East Carolina University, the University of North Carolina Coastal Studies Institute, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, the Georgia Aquarium, and The Mariners’ Museum in Newport News, Va. Major funding for the expedition was provided by NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research.


Scientists Clarify ‘Mini-Sub’ Role at Pearl Harbor


By Judith Snyderman, Special to American Forces Press Service


WASHINGTON – Scientists who have been studying wreckage from Japanese mini-sub- marines that were part of an advance strike force on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, say a new television show is informative, but could leave viewers with misunderstandings.


For one thing, they say, the show — part of PBS’s “NOVA” series — reveals no new discoveries.


“It’s basically a synopsis of the work that we performed up through 2000,” Navy Capt. John A. Rodgaard said during a “DoDLive” bloggers roundtable Jan. 6. Rodgaard was joined by Peter Hsu, a scientist who analyzes forensic shock effects of un- derwater explosions, and Robert Neyland of the Naval History and Heritage Command, which studies shipwrecks and sunken air- craft.


These experts say there’s no dispute that hours before the main air attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese navy launched five mini-subs armed with torpedoes from larger submarines. U.S. Navy ships sank the mini- subs, and the first pieces of wreckage were identified by the Hawaiian underwater re- search lab called HURL in 1992.


Another key piece of evidence is an aerial photograph of one of the mini-subs that was taken by a Japanese aircraft. In 1994, Rodgaard used that evidence to correct earlier beliefs that only one of the five submarines that had been launched made it into the harbor, and that it failed in its attack. “What we demonstrated initially was that a second one had actually entered and also was successful in its attack,” he said. The mini-sub pictured in the aerial pho- tograph is the one featured in the television documentary, Rodgaard explained. But the show implies the wreckage is a new find, he added, when it actually was well known for years, though it wasn’t identified as one of the five Pearl Harbor attack mini-subs until recently.


Neyland said the timeline presented by the program incorrectly suggests the sub was the last of the five launched. “We con-


sider that the No. 1 submarine, based on the Japanese records of the release times,” he said.


One other problem, Rodgaard said, is the documentary’s assertion that a mini-sub tor- pedo struck the USS Arizona and did not detonate.


“I don’t know about you, but I don’t think an object such as a torpedo that winds up being a dud, striking an object at [42] knots, is going to remain intact,” he said. Hsu theorized that, based on weight analyses, the unexploded torpedo depicted on the show may have been dropped from an aircraft. Despite these concerns, the experts agreed that the story of the Pearl Harbor mini- subs is a fascinating piece of history that deserves ongoing research. One mystery is the location of the wreckage in a 1,000-foot- deep debris field outside Pearl Harbor.


Neyland said it’s clear the mini-sub must have been salvaged after the war ended, but that leaves unanswered questions, such as why it is where it is, why it is disassembled, and why no record exists of it having been found and salvaged out of Pearl Harbor. Rodgaard added that a 15-foot section of the mini-sub is missing, and he hopes it will be found. Each piece of evidence is a time capsule of history, he said.


Scientific techniques such as bio-corro- sion studies on bolts and studies of the origins of microorganisms attached to parts may solve some of these mysteries. “I would say our journey continues,” he said. “There are quite a few things that we could still do.” (Judith Snyderman works in the Defense Media Activity’s emerging media director- ate.)


Publisher's Note Continued from Page 4.


against all my principles and hopefully in my lifetime books do not disappear and are re- placed by electronic ones. Doing this run in one day is not advisable, but I had no choice. On the last day of the year I headed to New Hampshire and picked up a donation of about 250 schooner photographs for the Interna- tional Maritime Library. This collection com- prised seven binders with separate binders for two, three, four, five, six and one of miscel- laneous photographs. There were also ar- ticles on some of the ships and their captains. Finding collections like this is becoming more and more difficult. Most of the people that own them have passed on and these collec-


tions have found their way to museums. Unfortunately they do not find their way back to the public unless you visit the museum that holds them. What I’m hoping to do is scan these and put them on the Library’s website along with the ship’s history so those that are interested can view them anytime. Presently were working on the website databases and hopefully will have these online this spring.


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I n t e r n a t i o n a l M a r i t i m e L i b r a r y Help Save All Facets of Maritime History


The International Maritime Library (IML) is a non-profit tax-deductible organization dedicated to the collection and preservation of all maritime information, such as books, periodicals, documents, personal papers and photographs and then computerizing it for ease of reference. Those interested will have access to the reference materials and the databases created from them, either on-site at IML or via the website. Presently, there is no facility dedicated to collecting and researching all the written maritime works, past and present, published around the globe. IML will fill this immense void by collecting published and personal works, and computerizing it. IML’s collections and computerized works will assist maritime academic institutions, businesses and the public allowing them quick access to information with the touch of a button. With the technological advances in today’s world, the maritime industry is well behind in what is available via computers. There have been thousands of maritime books and periodicals published throughout history, which presently cannot be referenced. Those looking for current or historical information spend hundreds hours, and may never locate that obscure piece of information. IML will change this by creating a single source for all maritime information.


ON-GOING PROJECTS INCLUDE:


Transcribing maritime articles from: Maine Industrial Journal (1880 to 1918); Bangor Whig & Courier (1836-1899); Republican Journal (1829 to present); and various others including Eastern Argus (Portland), Bath Daily Times, Eastport Sentiniel, Ellsworth American, New Bedford Mercury, Salem Gazette and Boston Evening Transcript.


Databasing - List of Merchant Vessels, 1867 to 1990s. Sail completed, Steamers (1867 to 1903) will be finished end of 2009


Transcribing Appleby's Ship Records for Maine and the WPA Ship Documents, especially ones not published. Passamaquoddy Complete and presently working on Bath.


Also, there are over 800 periodicals published in the maritime world and not one library holds a quarter of them. IML will bridge this problem by collecting and comput- erizing them for future use by researchers and the general public. There is a massive amount of work to be done to accomplish these goals, which should have been started 150 years ago!


To make this happen we need financial support, please help us do more! For more information please call (207) 223-8846.


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