“The Titan Sub Disaster: Minute by Minute” includes an extensive firsthand account of the submersible rescue efforts from Ed Cassano, CEO of Pelagic Research Services, owner and operator of a remote-operated, highly sophisticated submersible capable of withstanding depths even greater than that of Titan. Government agencies contacted Pelagic, which, thanks to a U.S. Air Force transport of its vessel, arrived at the dive site and made its descent just past 4 a.m. on Thursday, June 22 — four days after Titan failed to materialize and with an estimated five hours of oxygen remaining in the ship, if it were still stranded and whole. Pelagic workers plunged its vessel, Odysseus 6, at a faster rate than usual because time was of the essence — 35 meters per minute, versus 25 meters.

At 6:15 a.m., with two hours of theoretical oxygen left on Titan, Odysseus 6 encountered a technical issue. Its thrusters failed, rendering it entirely useless. Workers had few options besides turning off the system and turning it back on again. That method worked, and Odysseus 6 continued its briefly delayed descent. When it landed on the ocean floor, Titan would likely have had little to no breathable air left, making the Odysseus 6’s efforts at this stage all the more critical.