Wichita native discovered Titanic in secret mission. New exhibit tells his story

The finding of the Titanic was quite unexpected.

At the heart of this discovery that nearly didn’t happen is a Wichita native now known as one of the most influential people in the world of underwater exploration.

“Kid from Kansas, you know,” Dr. Robert Ballard told The Wichita Eagle. “Don’t underestimate a kid from Kansas.”

Now more than 40 years after Ballard’s famous 1985 discovery, Wichita is home to a special exhibit that tells the story of the classified Navy mission that unpredictably led to one of the most significant maritime discoveries in the 20th century.

Finding Titanic: The Secret Mission

Exploration Place is hosting the traveling exhibition “Finding Titanic: The Secret Mission” now through Sept. 7.

The exhibit, which Ballard says is not your usual piece on the Titanic, is more about the mission itself.

“I think what is really cool is you literally are put into my shoes,” he said.

As you go through the exhibit, it is as if you are the oceanographer, explorer and naval officer tasked with finding and surveying two Cold War nuclear submarines — the Thresher and the Scorpion. But as you do so, the world thinks you are only searching for the RMS Titanic.

“In the case of the Scorpion, it was carrying nuclear weapons, and we didn’t want the Soviets to know where we were going, so we needed a cover,” Ballard said.

As you’ll experience in the exhibit, the classified mission was completed. And with 12 days to spare, Ballard had an opportunity to actually look for the Titanic.

For Ballard, this was a chance to climb his version of Mount Everest.

“So many other people had attempted to climb it, and so it was more the challenge than anything else,” he recalled of his opportunity. And while it was thrilling, he wasn’t exactly confident he’d find it.

“I had been working with the French over the years, and they had the resources, and they had a brand new sonar called the SAR, and that’s really the way you hunt,” Ballard said. “You have what’s called a side scan sonar, and think of it as a lawn mower that can have a big wide swath of almost a mile, and you simply mow the lawn, and so they wanted to test it, and I said, ‘well, why don’t we test it on finding the Titanic?’”

With “all the resources in the world,” the French were unable to find it.

“And I went, ‘we’ve got a problem here, because I only have a few days,” Ballard recalled. “ ... and they had the tool, and I had a camera on a string, and so when they didn’t find it, I thought, this is going to be impossible.”

So, how exactly did Ballard find the Titanic with only his version of what he’d describe as “a camera on a string?”

“That’s what the exhibit is all about,” he said. “How did I find the Titanic, and what was the secret I discovered?”

Visiting the Titanic exhibit

“Finding Titanic: The Secret Mission” is included with Exploration Place admissions and free for members.

If you do not have a membership, tickets are $20 each for ages 12 to 64 and $15 for ages 3 to 11 and 65+. Children ages 2 and under are free. Tickets are $2 cheaper if purchased online.

Exploration Place is participating in Blue Star Museums, offering free admission for active duty military and up to 5 family members through Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 7. The science museum also offers discounts and special promotions, including for households receiving SNAP or WIC benefits, some nonprofit organizations and AAA members.

Exploration Place is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday through Wednesday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday.