Go deep for 50th anniversary of USS Monitor discovery: Printable 3D artifacts, webinar and a 360-degree video of ironclad's resting place

A shark roves over the Civil War wreck in a new 360-degree video (NOAA)

With printable virtual artifacts and a 360-degree video from the ocean floor, NOAA's Monitor National Marine Sanctuary is adding a wow factor to the celebration of the discovery of the famed ironclad USS Monitor 50 years ago this month.

The last days of August are the culmination of a yearlong effort to mark the anniversary. Offerings will include a webinar led by USS Monitor expert John Broadwater.

“We had planned for all of our celebrations to be virtual (in order) to reach a national audience,” said Tane Casserley, the sanctuary’s research coordinator. “Keeping in the spirit of USS Monitor being a marvel of technology and innovation, the sanctuary plans to continue that theme by using the newest technologies to celebrate the 50th anniversary.”

The USS Monitor, which fought the ironclad CSS Virginia in March 1862, ending the supremacy of wooden ships in combat, sank months later off Cape Hatteras, N.C., with 16 lives lost. The ironclad was located by a team of researchers on Aug. 27, 1973. The signature turret and hundreds of other artifacts have undergone conservation in recent years.

3D models of worm wheel, boot and gun tool (MNMS)

Virtual artifact collection – available now

NOAA now offers two web links (here and here) for accessing a selection of artifacts that have undergone or are still receiving treatment at the Mariners’ Museum and Park in Newport News.

A hammer, anchor, powder scooper, Wellington-style leather boots, various gun tools, wheel and other iconic artifacts were scanned earlier this year at the museum in a collaborative project involving the University of West Florida.

“The completed scans are available for viewing online and as a download for home 3D printing,” said Casserley.

“Monitor’s artifacts are quite fragile after their conservation process has been completed and by virtually recreating and 3D printing the artifacts, (the sanctuary) can quite literally put history in people’s hands all while ensuring the safety of the original artifact.”

Visitors to the web pages can load the models and then rotate them. The models can be downloaded as STL files.

Virtual model of turret allows viewers to rotate image and press numbers for details (NOAA)

360-degree video – debuted Friday (Aug. 25)

The immersive experience brings people “virtually down to the ocean floor to see the shipwreck itself and its incredible marine life.”

The video shows multiple angles of the ironclad, which landed upside down, teeming with colorful marine life.

“Transformed from a weapon of war to an island of marine life, Monitor continues to serve as habitat for a wealth of marine life. Dive in to see sand tiger sharks, sea turtles, and more,” NOAA says.

NOAA has produced a number of such videos and gives these instructions to reviewers:

“If you're on a desktop, click and drag to experience in 360 degrees, or pair your phone with your virtual reality headset. For the best viewing experience, watch the video in high-definition: click the gear symbol in the lower right corner, then select any of the HD options that pop up when you click ‘Quality.’”

John Broadwater webinar – 1 p.m. ET Aug. 31

Broadwater, a maritime archaeologist and author, has been on numerous USS Monitor expeditions and is former superintendent of the sanctuary. An overview of the webinar includes this description:

“Discover why the shipwreck was difficult to locate and learn about the expeditions to find it. Go back in time to August of 1973, when John G. Newton led a team of scientists in search of the elusive shipwreck. Learn why it continued to be difficult to identify once they thought they found it and what finally convinced the team it was indeed the USS Monitor.”

Broadwater told the Picket he will speak on the webinar about high interest in the Monitor back then. “The moon and planets must have been aligned, because at least three different groups chose 1973 to search for the Monitor,” he said in an email. “I was in charge of one of the groups looking in the wrong place, because we believed the story published by Robert Marx, who claims to have found Monitor near Cape Hatteras lighthouse in the 1950s.”

Register for the webinar here.

Fans of the ironclad can follow all activities on the sanctuary’s Facebook page.

PICKET COVERAGE OF USS MONITOR

-- Cathryn Newton: At 16, she was the youngest crew member. She says the find was a group effort.
-- John Harris: He became a hang glider pilot and founded Kitty Hawk kites. But first, he ran the 1973 expedition's underwater camera system.
-- Go deep for 50th anniversary of USS Monitor discovery: Printable 3D artifacts, webinar and a 360-degree video of ironclad's resting place
-- USS Monitor: Navy recognizes Virginia museum for cleaning of ironclad's two Dahlgren guns, which are still being conserved
-- The USS Monitor overcame doubters. Its crew trusted the ironclad, even during the terrible storm that sank the famous ironclad.
-- What do USS Monitor, Jimmy Fallon have in common? Saugerties, NY. This town morphed from industrial 'Inferno' to a cool tourist spot