Back from Oblivion: Deep Water Wrecks of World War II, Commemoration and Protection
Dublin Core
Title
Back from Oblivion: Deep Water Wrecks of World War II, Commemoration and Protection
Description
The paper as part of Session 4, Underwater Cultural Heritage of World War II in the Asia-Pacific Region:
Discoveries, Opportunities & Challenges, provides an overview of some of the recent high-profile, deep-water
World War II shipwreck discoveries in the Pacific and how studying the data collected supports the Naval
History and Heritage Command’s long-term management strategies, approaches to policy and protection, and
commemorations. The case studies under consideration are the Battle of Midway Japanese aircraft carriers, USS
Juneau, and USS Indianapolis. The resources available to conduct the work include the data from surveys
conducted by Vulcan LLC and reviewed by the U.S. Navy’s cultural resource managers for sunken military
craft. The data set provides a unique opportunity for research and scientific analysis of deep-water wrecks that
are remarkably well-preserved and raises questions on how to address, through policy or practice, the new
challenges facing submerged cultural resource managers. The results provide an overview of the information
learned from reviewing the ROV footage of the wreck sites and how that informs the management approach for
other and future deep water U.S. Navy wreck discoveries by third-party researchers.
Discoveries, Opportunities & Challenges, provides an overview of some of the recent high-profile, deep-water
World War II shipwreck discoveries in the Pacific and how studying the data collected supports the Naval
History and Heritage Command’s long-term management strategies, approaches to policy and protection, and
commemorations. The case studies under consideration are the Battle of Midway Japanese aircraft carriers, USS
Juneau, and USS Indianapolis. The resources available to conduct the work include the data from surveys
conducted by Vulcan LLC and reviewed by the U.S. Navy’s cultural resource managers for sunken military
craft. The data set provides a unique opportunity for research and scientific analysis of deep-water wrecks that
are remarkably well-preserved and raises questions on how to address, through policy or practice, the new
challenges facing submerged cultural resource managers. The results provide an overview of the information
learned from reviewing the ROV footage of the wreck sites and how that informs the management approach for
other and future deep water U.S. Navy wreck discoveries by third-party researchers.
Creator
Blair Atcheson
Frank Thompson
Publisher
The Museum of Underwater Archaeology
Date
2023
Language
English
Bibliographic Citation
Atcheson, M. Blair and Frank Thompson. 2023. “Back from Oblivion - Deep Water Wrecks of World War II - Commemoration and Protection.” Edited by Jennifer Craig, Jay Mok, T. Kurt Knoerl, and Alexis Catsambis. In Proceedings of Fifth Asia Pacific Regional Conference on Underwater Cultural Heritage: Gwangju, The Republic of Korea, November 13-18 2023. The Museum of Underwater Archaeology. URL: https://apconf.omeka.net/exhibits/show/apconfproceedings/item/1894
Files
Citation
Blair Atcheson and Frank Thompson, “Back from Oblivion: Deep Water Wrecks of World War II, Commemoration and Protection,” Asia Pacific Regional Conference on Underwater Cultural Heritage Proceedings, accessed February 10, 2026, https://apconf.omeka.net/items/show/1894.