Explore an interactive map of WW2 shipwrecks

Explore a database of more than 200,000 wrecks

Only a small fraction of shipwrecks occurring throughout human history have been discovered. This database is the largest compilation to date, and includes more than 80,000 images, with related news updated on a rolling basis.

See images of shipwrecks from WWII's Battle of Midway

Deep-sea explorers have captured detailed images of three iconic shipwrecks from World War II's Battle of Midway, including the first up-close photos of the Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi since its sinking in 1942.

When German submarines lurked in US coastal waters

During World War II, German submarines (also known as U-boats) prowled the Southern coast of the US in 1942 and 1943, sinking more than 60 ships and killing 600 Allied soldiers. The campaign is less well-known, since the major battles in Stalingrad and Midway happened at the time. Several of these submarines and the ships they sank are now popular diving spots.

Deadliest maritime disaster

In the final months of World War II, 75 years ago, German citizens and soldiers fleeing the Soviet army died when the “Wilhelm Gustloff” sank

How many people died in WWII?

Fallen.io, a short animated data-driven documentary about war and peace, explores the harrowing statistics of World War II and sizes up its numbers to other wars in history, including recent conflicts. Watch and click through this interactive documentary to learn more.

Historians estimate only 1% of shipwrecks have been discovered

The oldest known shipwreck dates to around 2,700–2,300 BCE, but evidence suggests humans started open-ocean sailing at least 50,000 years ago. Many have completely deteriorated but artifacts aboard the vessels remain, while many lack historical records of the event or location.

An archive of some of America's most significant shipwrecks

From The Portland—known as New England's "Titanic"—to the Civil War's USS Monitor, this archive from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration provides overviews of some of the most well-known shipwrecks in US history.

Mapping Michigan's shipwrecks

For centuries, the Great Lakes have provided vital access to the Midwest from the Atlantic Ocean, allowing the establishment of key trading outposts and ultimately the growth of major cities in the region. An estimated 6,000 vessels were lost on the Great Lakes with approximately 1,500 of these ships located in Michigan waters. Explore the deadly legacy of the region with resources pulled together by the Michigan History Center.

World War II's Battle of Savo Island was the worst wartime naval defeat in US history

On Aug. 9, 1942, a larger, radar-equipped Allied fleet lost four heavy cruisers off Guadalcanal in the Pacific theater without sinking a single Japanese ship. The Navy kept the humiliating rout secret from the public for years. Experts argued failure resulted from fractured command, not inferior arms or ships.

The 1915 sinking of the Lusitania precipitated World War I

In 1915, the British RMS Lusitania sank after being torpedoed by a German submarine. The Germans claimed the ocean liner was transporting munitions. Almost 1,200 civilians were killed in the disaster, which became a symbol of German aggression in the lead-up to World War I.

A collection of contemporary maps from World War II

Newspapers published detailed maps of the conflict in real-time. See different portrayals of the situation, ranging from propaganda maps to speculative maps about the war's outcome. The fascinating depictions reveal how maps can show us the aspirations and intentions of different players in a global conflict.

Watch how engineers salvaged almost every sunken ship at Pearl Harbor

This four-part video series explains the massive effort to raise, repair, and refloat the Pacific Fleet—detailing the engineering challenges, diving operations, and months of around-the-clock work that restored all but three damaged ships to active service.

The world's maritime traffic in real-time

More than 50,000 ships are sailing the high seas on any given day, representing the highest volume pathway for international trade. This real-time traffic provides a visual impression of the scale of ocean-bound commerce.

A map of WWII refugees and their stories

Trace the paths of different people and families on this interactive map as they made their escape from the Nazi regime. Primary and secondary sources like letters, documents, memoirs and diaries, photos, interviews, and news clippings showed how many found a path to freedom, from the Kindertransport to individual stories.

Who was impacted by the first world war, and how?

This interactive map from the National Archives in the UK details the global impact of World War I. Countries and territories from Aden to New Zealand were impacted by the Great War, which started in 1914 and lasted until 1918. By selecting various locations on the map, viewers can access articles and evidence on how the war's influence traveled far beyond the front lines.

One in five 16th century Spanish ships sank while crossing the Atlantic

Despite the incredibly high rate of catastrophic wrecks, during the Age of Exploration Spanish investors continued to fund voyages. Here, economists break down the incentives that led to increased risk, including short travel seasons and the propensity to overload ships.

Civilian 'little ships' saved Dunkirk: over 700 civilian boats joined the evacuation

Between May  26 and June 4, 1940, Operation Dynamo evacuated roughly 338,000 Allied soldiers from Dunkirk, France. Crucially, over 700 civilian “little ships”—yachts, fishing boats, pleasure craft—ferried troops from the shallow beaches to larger vessels, embodying a national rescue effort and preserving the core of Britain’s army for the war ahead.

Explore an interactive map of battles from the American Revolution, along with detailed summaries of each engagement

In 1915, workers recovered a submarine-like vessel from the Chicago River, prompting fears of German espionage

The American War of Independence included over 1,500 military engagements

Several hundred of these were major battles like Yorktown, Saratoga, and Bunker’s Hill. This interactive map shows the locations of key locations of the conflict, highlighting major factors in each battle and their outcome.

Maps of murder across medieval England

These interactive maps show the sites of murders across York, Oxford, and London during the 14th Century. Explore the data by clicking site pins or experimenting with map filters, including crime scene type and murder weapon. Each pin includes a blurb on what researchers concluded about the attack, such as how a fight between the London fishmonger and skinner guilds during August 1340 ultimately left one man dead.

In recent years, orcas have begun sinking boats and other orcas are following in their footsteps

For just over five years, killer whales have been ramming (and occasionally sinking) expensive yachts, sailboats, and fishing boats in waters near European coasts. Scientists believe these incidents are the result of play rather than aggressive attacks.

Looting art is often a byproduct of war

During WWII, Hitler orchestrated the theft of many masterpieces to eventually create his own museum. While many of these were recovered, iconic works such as Raphael's "[Portrait of a Young Man](https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/the-story-of-the-lost-raphaels-portrait-of-a-young-man/)" and Vincent van Gogh's "Painter on His Way to Work" remain missing or were destroyed by the Nazis.

Explore the animals that populate the depths of the ocean, from fish and coral in the first few hundred feet, all the way down to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Women in WWII used tattoos to avoid capture

During World War II, Japanese soldiers kidnapped women from Southeast Asian countries and forced them into sexual slavery. But they hesitated to capture married women, a fact that women from the island of Timor exploited, painstakingly poking tattoos onto their bodies that marked them as married women.

This real-time tracking of the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak in May 2026 offers a unique glimpse into the global reach of the outbreak and whether the virus sickened passengers and their communities around the world.

View a map of the world’s major earthquakes from 1956-2022

Such maps can help identify tectonic plate boundaries. The most significant earthquakes are characteristic of converging plates, such as those in the Circum-Pacific Belt and the Alpine-Himalayan Belt, where the Himalayas continue to grow.

Explore Pompeii with an interactive map packed with 60+ key sites

This tool provides detailed information on major landmarks—from the Villa of Mysteries to the House of the Tragic Poet—and suggests themed walking routes based on visit length. A companion app adds virtual reconstructions and a full audioguide.

Maritime trade in the Mediterranean accelerated during the late Bronze Age

This map illustrates the vibrant trade networks of the eastern Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age (circa 1500–1200 BCE), highlighting an era of growing interconnectivity among major powers including Egypt, the Hittite Empire, Mesopotamia, and others.

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

Explore the archaeological treasures of Pompeii, the city buried under volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE.

In 1984, Operation Smash Hit intentionally crashed a 239-ton train into a nuclear waste canister at 100 miles per hour to prove the canister's safety, which remained completely intact and lost just 0.29 of its 100 pounds of pressure.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is the largest ground war in Europe since World War II in terms of casualties, forces mobilized, and displacement of civilians.

Volcanic activity may have triggered the Black Death by spewing gases that led to crop failures in Europe, thus forcing the import of grain ships with plague-infested fleas.

See a 3D reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital that was home to an estimated population of 200,000 to 400,000.

See the most iconic photos from four decades of LIFE magazine

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

View the ten deadliest tornadoes in US history.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

The use of fungi to detoxify land and water—a process known as mycoremediation—has been used to clean up natural resources affected by the 2025 California wildfires.

Roughly 43 million US borrowers owe roughly $1.7T in student debt, the second-largest source of consumer debt behind mortgages.

In 1945, Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí and legendary animator Walt Disney began collaborating on a short film that was not completed until 2003, years after both men had died.

Alzheimer's can lead to brain shrinkage, with an average of around 2% of volume reduction per year

The US first hosted the World Cup in 1994, a tournament that lives in soccer infamy for its poor planning and the murder of Colombian player Andres Escobar, who'd accidentally scored on his own net.

In its famous catalog, Sears sold $600 DIY house kits from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in an estimated 100,000 'Sears and Roebuck homes.'

The Beatles' US label rejected the band's first two singles, 'Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You,' with one executive calling the band 'dead in the water.'

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

Shooting stars, or meteors, are fragments of asteroids and comets that burn up as they enter Earth's atmosphere, creating streaks in the sky called meteor showers.