The Quest, Sir Ernest Shackleton’s last ship, has been discovered remarkably preserved at the bottom of the Labrador Sea, resting upright at a depth of 1,280 feet (390 meters). The vessel, which sank in 1962, 40 years after the renowned explorer’s death, was located by a research team led by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.
The team dedicated months to meticulously reviewing ship logs, news articles, and legal documents to pinpoint the Quest’s approximate resting place off the coast of Labrador. Their efforts culminated in a side-scan sonar survey that ultimately detected the ship. An oblong shape in the sonar imagery not only revealed the wreck’s location but also indicated its surprisingly intact condition.
Quest’s Discovery Confirmed
“I can definitively confirm that we have found the wreck of Quest,” stated David Mearns, a shipwreck hunter and member of the search team, in a Canadian Geographic article announcing the discovery. “Data from high resolution side-scan sonar imagery corresponds exactly with the known dimensions and structural features of this special ship, and is also consistent with events at the time of the sinking.”
A side-scan sonar image of the Quest, upright on the seabed. This image confirms the ship's remarkably preserved state.
This discovery follows the successful 2022 expedition that located Shackleton’s famed ship Endurance, which sank in 1915 after being trapped in Antarctic ice. The Endurance, a three-masted schooner, was found in the Weddell Sea at a depth of approximately 9,900 feet.
Shackleton’s Legacy and Quest’s Fate
Shackleton purchased the Quest (originally named Foca I) for £11,000 (equivalent to $639,379 today) and refitted it for expeditions. He sailed the Quest to South Georgia Island the following year but tragically suffered a heart attack and died shortly after arriving. According to Canadian Geographic, the Quest’s journey continued for four decades after Shackleton’s passing, facing various challenges before ultimately sinking in 1962.
The final photo of the Quest as it sank beneath the surface in the Labrador Sea. This image marks the end of the ship's journey.
In April of that year, the Quest was beset by ice in the Labrador Sea, leading to water entering the engine room the following month. The ship finally succumbed to the damage and sank on May 5 at approximately 5:40 p.m. local time. Crucially, the ship’s captain telegrammed its new owners the vessel’s final coordinates, a vital piece of information that proved instrumental in the recent discovery.
Quest’s Rediscovery and Future Exploration
The discovery of the Quest occurred on Sunday, June 9, after approximately 18 hours of searching the designated area. The wreck was located about 1.55 miles (2.5 kilometers) from its last reported position.
The team’s next step involves deploying a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to capture detailed images of the wreck, similar to the stunning visuals obtained of the Endurance in 2022.
Comparing Shackleton’s Ships
While the Endurance was lost for over a century before its rediscovery in 2022, the Quest remained submerged for only 62 years. Another of Shackleton’s ships, the Discovery, which played a key role in his successful Antarctic expedition, has been preserved and is now on display at a museum in Dundee, Scotland, where it was originally built.
