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It wasn't until July of 1986, nearly 75 years after the RMS Titanic's ill-fated voyage, that humans finally set eyes on the ship's sunken remains. 

Now those remains are, in a way, resurfacing, thanks to the release of more than 80 minutes of uncut footage from the first filmed voyage to the wreck. The research team behind the Titanic's discovery, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, released the video on Wednesday. 

Available on YouTube, the footage contains shots of the ship never revealed to the public, including its rust-caked bow, intact railings, a chief officer's cabin and a promenade window. 

At one point, the camera zeroes in on a chandelier, still hanging, swaying against the current in a haunting state of elegant decay. 

This uncut 1986 footage of the Titanic marks the first time humans laid eyes on the shipwreck since it sank in 1912.

 disappeared beneath the waves after it struck an iceberg on its 1912 voyage from Southampton, England, to New York. Only 705 of the ship's 2,227 passengers and crew survived, 

Efforts to locate the vessel began almost immediately after it wrecked, but were hampered by insufficient technology. 

a team of American and French researchers to find the vessel

 in 1985, some 12,500 feet below the ocean's surface. Using cutting-edge sonar imaging technology, the team followed a trail of debris to the site, roughly 350 miles southeast of Newfoundland, Canada.

, the ship's carcass is all scientists have left to understand the great maritime disaster. 

scientists suspect is sheer human greed. 

The WHOI's newly released footage shows the shipwreck in the most complete state we'll ever see.  The ship's forward mast has collapsed, its poop deck has folded in on itself and its gymnasium has crumbled. The crow's nest and the captain's bathtub have completely disappeared. 

 and scuttled plans to retrieve the Titanic's radio for an exhibit.

The WHOI said it timed the release to mark the 25th anniversary of the film 

, which was re-released in theaters on Valentine's Day 

as a testament to the ship's cultural staying power. 

While the Hollywood film might be more likely to elicit emotions (

), the new ocean-floor footage is still transfixing, according to 

"More than a century after the loss of Titanic, the human stories embodied in the great ship continue to resonate," Cameron said

"By releasing this footage, WHOI is helping tell an important part of a story that spans generations and circles the globe."  

History

Emily Olson

Author

The Titanic's rust-caked bow, an officer's cabin and a promenade window are part of the never-before-seen footage of the shipwreck site, which continues to slowly vanish 12,500 feet below the waves.

Newly-released footage of a 1986 Titanic dive reveals ship's haunting interior

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