- The implosion of OceanGate's Titan submersible sparked questions about what's allowed in the sea.
- Governments and maritime laws could oversee safety and activity even in the high seas, experts said.
The OceanGate submersible's catastrophic attempt to visit the Titanic's wreckage led to the death of all five of its passengers and a costly search effort.
The tragic and bizarre episode prompted questions about the materials used to build the vessel, the liability that OceanGate may face, and what safety warnings the company's CEO Stockton Rush — one of the passengers who died on board the Titan — had apparently waved away.
But why are private commercial vessels allowed to dive some 13,000 feet at all, with apparently little-to-no government oversight?
The quirks of maritime law offer one explanation: The realm of international waters, hundreds of miles from shorelines, is often thought of as an ambiguous legal zone. But while countries can't claim ownership of the high seas, there are still ways for governments to regulate the actions of their own citizens and their registered vessels even in that remote domain, experts said.
So what was missing here? The issue was that novel vessels like new submersibles are currently not necessarily subject to the registration and inspection requirements that apply to traditional vessels like ships, maritime law experts told Insider.
In the US, for instance, the Coast Guard conducts inspections of ships registered in the US to gauge their seaworthiness.
"International maritime law is comprehensive — there are many treaties governing every aspect of ship design, construction, and operation," said Robert Jarvis, maritime and space law expert and law professor at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
But in the case of a submersible like the Titan, the law simply was behind the latest technology, he said. There's nothing that prevents countries from making rules for such new vessels — but, Jarvis said, "this is an example of where the law did not catch up."
The phenomenon of deep-sea tourism has invited some comparisons to private commercial space flight, gaining media attention with the likes of Blue Origin's trips with passengers. And there are some legal similarities in how the sea and space are governed, according to experts.
Space travel is overseen by international laws that articulate that no country can own outer space (just like no country can own the high seas). Anyone launching vehicles into outer space also needs to inform their national government.
It can be somewhat more complex for seafaring vessels. In general, ships that are registered to a country are bound by the laws of that country. Vessels like submersibles, linked to another boat, could be in a gray zone if they're not registered.
But in this case, given that the Titan was linked to a Canadian-flagged vessel, the Polar Prince, it's likely that Canadian laws would govern the submersible, according to Annie Brett, an ocean law expert at the University of Florida law school.
Still, the issue is that governments don't have intensive regulations or requirements for new vessels like submersibles in the first place, she said. That can make the depths of the sea something of a legal Wild West, she said.
"The space industry has become heavily regulated," Brett said. "That's different from what's happening in the ocean."
"And there hasn't really been that much in terms of operation in the deep sea," she added. "Now we're talking about deep-sea mining and tourism, but that's all very new."
In the US, the Federal Aviation Administration provides licenses for commercial space trips. But even that oversight has its limits — the agency licenses the activity specifically, and doesn't regulate the actual craft, said Michael Listner, an attorney and expert in outer space law and policy who advises private companies, non-profits, and government agencies.
Vessel safety in the ocean is governed by more of a patchwork of oversight. Besides government agencies, insurance companies can play a role, and private organizations known as classification societies can set safety standards for vessels.
There are submersibles, for instance, that inspect pipelines in the deep sea and look under oil rigs, which are involved in industrial operations that require adequate insurance, said John Paul Jones, a maritime law expert and professor emeritus at the University of Richmond law school.
"And insurance companies won't provide insurance if those vessels aren't meeting strict safety requirements," he said. "Everyone's in business to make a profit, not pay off giant liability claims."
As for OceanGate, the Titan was not classed according to industry standards, and experts said it's likely that the submersible itself wasn't registered as a vessel of any country, despite being apparently tied to a Canada-based boat.
A representative for OceanGate Expeditions declined to comment to Insider, saying the company is "unable to provide any additional information at this time."