Ocean Discoveries

• Robert Ballard discovered thermal vents 2,500 meters deep in the Galapagos Rift.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Robert Ballard's first expedition, Project Famous, successfully field-mapped underwater for the first time. During this time of exploration, he discovered the ocean's entire volume is recycled over a period of years through the earth's crust. While conducting Project Famous, Ballard also discovered thermal vents located off the Galapagos Islands.
  
  

Life on the Ocean Bottom

• While conducting Project Famous, Ballard was surprised to find the existence of plants and animals living in total darkness as deep as 8,000 feet below the ocean's surface. It was the first discovery of life on earth that was not fed by sunlight. This life was instead living off Earth's energy. One of the animals discovered was the giant red tube worm.
  
  

Sunken Ships

• Robert Ballard also sought to locate famous sunken ships with the help of deep-diving submarines. He has been able to discover the resting site of ships such as the German Bismarck, which was sunk during World War II, and the Lusitania, a passenger ship torpedoed by Germans in World War I. In addition, he found the wreck of John F. Kennedy's PT-109, a boat commanded by Kennedy that sunk in World War II.
  
  

The Titanic

• In 1977 Robert Ballard and a team of scientists began a search for the Titanic, which they found in 1985.Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Mr. Ballard's research and discoveries are impressive and have increased the world's knowledge bank of the ocean. He is probably most famous, however, for finding the wreck of the Titanic. This was a 45,000 ton luxury liner promoted as unsinkable. On its maiden voyage in 1912, it went under after hitting an iceberg. Ballard found it in 1985 by using a submersible sled he developed that contained a remote-controlled camera to transmit images.