There is no denying that Egypt has been a hotbed for all kinds of amazing archeological discoveries over the years. And at the turn of the millennium, one of the biggest ones in recent memory was uncovered. In 2001, archeologists were excited to discover a few things: a statue of the God Hapi, some marble walls, a statue of a king, and more on the site of Heracleon.
A stele was also recovered from an underwater site here, confirming that this was in fact, an ancient Egyptian city that once stood on the Canopic branch of the Nile. During the 30th dynasty of Ancient Egypt, Pharaoh Nectanebo I issued a decree regarding payments to the temple.
Apollo 11 Rockets
Apollo 11 is a significant part of American history for landing the first two astronauts on the moon. It was a byproduct of the space challenge between the US and the Soviet Union, and these F-1 engines were lost on the Atlantic Ocean after they successfully propelled the ship past the S-1C stage.
The recovery of the rockets took a three-week expedition by punctiliously scanning the seabed with sonar technology. This project was funded by Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos, and they were able to retrieve various parts of two out of the five rockets used.
The Vasa Shipwreck
The Vasa was a Swedish warship that sank on her maiden voyage in 1628. It wasn't until the late 1950s that the Vasa shipwreck was discovered just outside the Stockholm harbor. Finally, in 1961, the Vasa was salvaged with an almost intact hull. The shipwreck was taken to a temporary museum until 1988 when it was transferred to the Vasa Museum, a maritime museum in Stockholm.
The Vasa shipwreck, and the artifacts discovered with it, have become one of Sweden's most visited tourist spots, having been seen by over 35 million visitors since 1961. The Vasa has not only become a symbol of the Swedish Empire, but also provided incredible insight into what naval warfare, shipbuilding, and everyday life looked like back in 17th-century Sweden.
Yonaguni Monument
These are also known as the Yonaguni Submarine Ruins. Located in the southernmost part of the Ryukyu Islands, in Japan, the ruins were discovered in 1986, when a group of tourism officials visited the area to observe sharks. A large population of hammerhead sharks dwells in the area, and it has now become a popular dive site despite its strong currents, thanks to the mysterious ruins.
The structure looks as if it were terraces, stepped monoliths assembled thousands of years ago for unknown reasons. However, some scientists are not all too ready to abandon the possibility that this could also be a natural formation.
The Town of Saint Thomas
These items might not look like much at first glance. But with the added context, you’ll understand just how significant they are. These are some of the remains of Saint Thomas, a Mormon pioneer town that had been flooded back in the 1930s. This is the result of a dam built on the Colorado River to create Lake Mead.
This community was home to Mormon settlers who aimed to plant cotton and spread their word to the West Coast. Fishermen first spotted the underwater concrete foundations in 2003. And just a few years later, the settlement became even more visible in light of an unprecedented drought in the region. The discovery opened up this interesting corner of history to the locals.