Japanese battleship Musashi
Musashi (武蔵), named after the former Japanese province,[2] was one of four planned Yamato-class battleships[N 1] built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN), beginning in the late 1930s. The Yamato-class ships were the heaviest and most powerfully armed battleships ever constructed,[4] displacing almost 72,000 long tons (73,000 t) fully loaded and armed with nine 460-millimetre (18.1 in) main guns. Their secondary armament consisted of four 155-millimetre (6.1 in) triple-gun turrets formerly used by the Mogami-class cruisers. They were equipped with six or seven floatplanes to conduct reconnaissance.
For other ships with the same name, see List of ships named Musashi.Commissioned in mid-1942, Musashi was modified to serve as the flagship of the Combined Fleet, and spent the rest of the year working up. The ship was transferred to Truk, Japan's main wartime naval base in the South Pacific theatre, in early 1943 and sortied several times that year with the fleet in unsuccessful searches for American forces. She was used to transfer forces and equipment between Japan and various occupied islands several times in 1944. Torpedoed in early 1944 by an American submarine, Musashi was forced to return to Japan for repairs, during which the navy greatly augmented her anti-aircraft armament. She was present during the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June, but did not come in contact with American surface forces. During the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Musashi was sunk by an estimated 19 torpedo and 17 bomb hits from American carrier-based aircraft on 24 October 1944. Over half of her crew was rescued. Her wreck was located in March 2015 by a team of researchers employed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
Wreck
Discovery
For over 70 years after her sinking, various attempts were made by shipwreck hunters to locate the wreck of the Japanese battleship, but none succeeded. Musashi, like other Japanese warships, did not have its name on its sides, making it more difficult for divers and shipwreck hunters to find her. A research team sponsored by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen eventually found her after eight years of searching for the wreck, going through various historical records in different countries, and deploying the high-tech yacht Octopus and a remotely operated vehicle to aid in their search. In March 2015, Allen announced that the team had found Musashi under the Sibuyan Sea, some 900 metres (3,000 ft) beneath the surface.[32][33]
The ship had been thought to have sunk in one piece; in reality, it exploded underwater,[34] scattering debris across the ocean floor. The bow section from the number one barbette forward is upright on the sea floor, while the stern is upside down. The forward superstructure and funnel is detached from the rest of the ship and lies on its port side.[35] In the live streaming video tour conducted by the expedition team, a mount for the seal of the Imperial Japanese Navy—a chrysanthemum made out of teak, long rotted away—can be seen amid the debris. The video also showed damage made by U.S. torpedoes, including a warped bow and hits under the ship's main gun.[35] Other items found in the area of the wreck, as well as other features found inside, led maritime experts to claim with 90% certainty that the wreck was Musashi.
To further confirm the identity of the wreck, Shigeru Nakajima, an electrical technician on Musashi who survived by jumping overboard after the order to abandon ship was given, told the Associated Press that he was "certain" that the wreck was Musashi upon seeing its anchor and the imperial seal mount. He also expressed his gratitude to the expedition team for having located the shipwreck.[32]
Preservation and protection
The discovery of the wreck beneath the surface of the Sibuyan Sea raised issues in the Philippines because the provincial government of Romblon, which has jurisdiction over the shipwreck site, and the Philippine Coast Guard were unaware that Allen and his team had an ongoing expedition in the area, though Governor Eduardo Firmalo publicly welcomed discovery of the ship. In response to the find, the Philippine Coast Guard stated that foreign-owned vessels need clearance from the Philippine Foreign Affairs Department, the Customs Bureau, and the Immigration Bureau before entering Philippine waters.[36]
Although discovering the shipwreck was very important to the Japanese people because of the presence aboard of over 1,000 Japanese sailors' remains, the National Museum of the Philippines stated that "any further activity [pertaining to the shipwreck would] be governed by established rules and regulations." The Museum pointed out that the wreck site of Musashi, as stated by the law, is considered an archaeological site under Romblon's jurisdiction, and was "giving priority to verifying the discovery, obtaining and sharing key information, facilitating the protection and preservation of the site, and formulating appropriate next steps."[36]
