Titanic

Titanic departing Southampton on 10 April 1912
Location of Titanic wreck
History
United Kingdom
Name	RMS Titanic
Namesake	Titans
Owner	White Star Line
Operator	White Star Line
Port of registry	Liverpool, England
Route	Southampton to New York City
Ordered	17 September 1908
Builder	Harland and Wolff, Belfast
Cost	£1.5 million (£180 million in 2023)
Yard number	401
Way number	400
Laid down	31 March 1909
Launched	31 May 1911
Completed	2 April 1912
Maiden voyage	10 April 1912
In service	10 April 1912
Out of service	15 April 1912
Identification	UK official number 131428[1] Code letters HVMP[2] Wireless call sign MGY
Fate	Struck an iceberg at 11:40 pm (ship's time) 14 April 1912 on her maiden voyage and sank 2 h 40 min later on 15 April 1912; 112 years ago (1912-04-15)
Status	Wreck
General characteristics
Class and type	Olympic-class ocean liner
Tonnage	46,329 GRT, 21,831 NRT
Displacement	52,310 tonnes
Length	882 ft 9 in (269.1 m) overall
Beam	92 ft 6 in (28.2 m)
Height	175 ft (53.3 m) (keel to top of funnels)
Draught	34 ft 7 in (10.5 m)
Depth	64 ft 6 in (19.7 m)
Decks	9 (A–G)
Installed power	24 double-ended and five single-ended boilers feeding two reciprocating steam engines for the wing propellers, and a low-pressure turbine for the centre propeller;[3] output: 46,000 HP
Propulsion	Two three-blade wing propellers and one centre propeller
Speed	Service: 21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph) Max: 23 kn (43 km/h; 26 mph)
Capacity	2,453 passengers and 874 crew (3,327 in total)
Notes	Lifeboats: 20 (sufficient for 1,178 people)

RMS Titanic was a British ocean liner that sank on 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, approximately 1,500 died (figures vary), making the incident one of the deadliest peacetime sinkings of a single ship.^[4] Titanic, operated by the White Star Line, carried some of the wealthiest people in the world, as well as hundreds of emigrants from the British Isles, Scandinavia, and elsewhere in Europe who were seeking a new life in the United States and Canada. The disaster drew public attention, spurred major changes in maritime safety regulations, and inspired a lasting legacy in popular culture.

RMS Titanic was the largest ship afloat upon entering service and the second of three Olympic-class ocean liners built for the White Star Line. The ship was built by the Harland and Wolff shipbuilding company in Belfast. Thomas Andrews Jr., the chief naval architect of the shipyard, died in the disaster. Titanic was under the command of Captain Edward John Smith, who went down with the ship.

The first-class accommodation was designed to be the pinnacle of comfort and luxury. It included a gymnasium, swimming pool, smoking rooms, fine restaurants and cafes, a Victorian-style Turkish bath, and hundreds of opulent cabins. A high-powered radiotelegraph transmitter was available to send passenger "marconigrams" and for the ship's operational use. Titanic had advanced safety features, such as watertight compartments and remotely activated watertight doors, which contributed to the ship's reputation as "unsinkable".

Titanic was equipped with 16 lifeboat davits, each capable of lowering three lifeboats, for a total capacity of 48 boats. Despite this capacity, the ship was scantly equipped with a total of only 20 lifeboats. Fourteen of these were regular lifeboats, two were cutter lifeboats, and four were collapsible and proved difficult to launch while the ship was sinking. Together, the 20 lifeboats could hold 1,178 people — roughly half the number of passengers on board, and a third of the number the passengers the ship could have carried at full capacity (a number consistent with the maritime safety regulations of the era). The British Board of Trade's regulations required 14 lifeboats for a ship 10,000 tonnes. Titanic carried six more than required, allowing 338 extra people room in lifeboats. When the ship sank, the lifeboats that had been lowered were only filled up to an average of 60%.