What made Robert Ballard Search the bottom of the ocean for the Titanic? Read the following article to find out and then answer the questions that follow.
Years went by. The Titanic lay many miles down in black, icy cold water.
No divers could go down in such deep water. And no one could even find the ship.
Some people thought the Titanic had been crushed. They said it was probably in a million pieces.
Yet treasure hunters kept on dreaming of the wonderful ship. They were sure there was gold on board - and diamonds and pearls.
A man named Robert Ballard dreamed of the Titanic too. Robert was a scientist. He studied the oceans.
Robert worked in a famous laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. He didn't care about treasure. He just wanted to find the ship. He thought about it for years.
Robert had a special invention. It was a kind of underwater robot. Its name was Argo.
Argo could dive down very, very deep. It had lights and a video camera. It could skim along the ocean floor. It could take underwater video pictures. And it could send them to TV screens on a ship.
Robert read all about the Titanic. He looked at maps and photos. Finally he was ready. He thought he knew where the mystery ship was waiting.
In the summer of 1985, Robert sailed north to Newfoundland. He went with a team of scientists. He took Argo with him.
Robert sent Argo hunting. He didn't even have to get his feet wet. But he had to do a lot of watching. For days it was the same. He saw sand and more sand.
Then at last something different flashed on the screen. Was it a ship? Yes, it was. A huge ship.
The other scientists began to cheer. They had done it. They had found the Titanic!
Robert could not believe his eyes. It was like seeing a ghost. There was the Titanic, sitting on the ocean floor. It had broken apart. But Robert could see how beautiful it still was.
Over the days Robert saw more and more of the ship. He saw the crow's-nest where the lookout first spotted the iceberg. A beautiful glass window lay in the sand. The ship's giant anchors were there. Bottles of wine were scattered about. And suitcases.
It was amazing. And it was sad. So many people had set out on the voyage. So few had returned.
Finally Robert sailed home. He did not tell anyone where he found the Titanic. He hoped the ship would stay just as it was. He did not want treasure hunters to come and loot it.
Robert wanted to go back to the Titanic. And a year later he did. He landed a small submarine right on the deck of the Titanic. He sent a robot inside the ship.
Robert did not take anything. But he did leave something behind. It was a message. He left it for anyone else who might find the Titanic. It asked that the great ship be left in peace.
All over the world people were thrilled by Robert's work. To some, it was very special. They had sailed on the Titanic.
They had been small children then. Now they were very old.
But they had never forgotten the "unsinkable Titanic."
The world would never forget.
From THE TITANIC LOST...AND FOUND by Judy Donnelly. Text copyright © 1987 by Judy Donnelly Gross.
A. a helping verb.
B. an adjective.
C. a proper noun.
D. a pronoun.
A. Other scientists did not know where to look.
B. The ship was down deeper than divers could go.
C. No one was interested in trying to find it.
D. The ship was covered with mud and seaweed.
A. Stock his ship with food and water.
B. Save his money.
C. Study movies of the Titanic.
D. Study maps, photos, and books.
A. He was able to use radar.
B. He sent other people down.
C. He used a giant anchor on the bottom.
D. He used a robot with a video camera.
| So many people had set out on the voyage. |
In the sentence above, the word voyage means
A. long trip.
B. march.
C. rescue mission.
D. picnic.
A. it would rot away.
B. it would be crushed by an iceberg.
C. treasure hunters would steal from it.
D. no one would be able to find it again.