Searching for the Titanic

Why wasn’t it easy to find the Titanic right after it sank?

• The ship had been eaten by sea creatures.

• The ship was at the bottom of the ocean

• The ship had exploded.

• The ship had frozen.

What caused the Titanic to sink?

• human-sized worms

• The cold water

• a storm

• an iceburg

Why did Robert Ballard feel discouraged as he went to bed on September 1, 1985?

• A piece had just broken off his ship.

• He hadn’t found the wreck of the Titanic.

• The Argo wasn’t working.

• He was seasick.

Which statement is NOT true based on the article?

• The wreck of the Titanic was found in 1985.

• The Titanic broke in half before it sank.

• The Titanic sank in the Pacific Ocean.

• The Titanic sank in 1912.

Which statement would Ballard be most likely to agree with?

• History is not important.

• Exploring the ocean is pointless.

• If something is hard to do, you should quit

• If you keep trying, you can sometimes do amazing things.

What event inspired Robert Ballard to become an oceanographer?

• He wanted to be an oceanographer since he was a young boy.

• Robert saw a problem and he wanted to fix it by creating a remote submersible.

• Robert loved sea life and wanted to explore the ocean.

• The Titanic was decaying and Robert wanted to find it before it was gone.

How did the Argo help Ballard find the wreck of the Titanic?

• Argo ran on gas instead of diesel.

• Argo was small and could fit in small places without breaking the ship.

• Argo could go deeper and stay longer under water than any other submersible.

• Argo was camouflaged so it could not scare the other sea animals.

What does an oceanographer do?

• a scientist who studies the sea.

• a scientist that maps the sea.

• a scientist who studies sea animals.

What does the word plunged mean?

• made a large splash

• lifted up

• fell or dropped suddenly

What problems did regular submersibles have?

• trips were dangerous, and the submersibles could stay down for only a few hours at a time. 

• they polluted the water

• the submersibles would break the ship

• the submersibles would scare away the sea life.