Hi All:
This is an underwater video of what’s left of an American submarine about 40 miles south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Launched in 1935, the USS Tarpon (SS-175) is one of the last surviving examples of a WWII era Porpoise class diesel-electric boat considered the scourge of the Japanese Navy during the 1940s. In 1942 and 1943, the USS Tarpon sank both Japanese and German Navy ships while serving in the Pacific, earning 7 battle stars. Not wanting to end up in the scrap yard, she made her last dive off Cape Hatteras in 1957 after escaping from a tug’s tow line. Coming to rest on the 140 FT sandy bottom only a few miles from the German submarines U-85, U-701 and U-352, she now remains on “eternal patrol,” guarding the clear blue waters of the North Carolina coast, a much more fitting end for such a historic vessel.
The 7 minute video is a swimming tour of the submarine beginning at the bow, turning and swimming toward the stern and then back. I'm swimming against a current with a stage bottle clipped to my side, so the trip toward the stern is slower and the return trip faster. The tube like structure at the beginning of the video is an emergency escape trunk. The level of the old deck would have been even with the top of this hatch, but years of strong currents and hurricanes have torn away all but the most sturdy metal and equipment. I've included archive pictures of the Tarpon from the 1940s to give some idea how she originally looked.
I shot this video in natural light, which is why it’s slightly darker. The water was so clear it was like swimming through blue glass. Temps near the surface were 80 and, after three thermoclines, 73 at the bottom. I used a Sony PD-170 camera in a Gates Housing with a Fathom SWP-35 110 degree port. This is my first production attempt with Apple FCP and I'm just learning the software. It came out looking more "amateur" than I wanted, but I got to learn some of the features! Feedback expected and always appreciated...
ENJOY!
