USS Indianapolis spare parts box found on floor of the Philipines Sea

USS Indianapolis wreckage found after 72 years

72 years after its 1945 sinking by the Japanese, USS Indianapolis wreckage has been found in more than 16,000 feet of water in the Philipines Sea.

The 879 deaths was the worst loss of life in U.S. Navy history. Only 317 survived the explosions and four days in the water with sharks attacking crew members. There were 1,196 aboard when the heavy cruiser rolled over and sank in 12 minutes.

No one knew where the Indianapolis was because it was on a secret mission delivering components for the atomic bomb, including about half of the world’s supply of uranium, that later was dropped on Hiroshima. A military pilot on a routine patrol flight spotted the hundreds of men floating in the Pacific Ocean.

Today there are 19 USS Indianapolis crew members still alive, including Sam Lopez, Sr., father of Linda Lopez Gandy, Class of 1965, president of the Monongah High Alumni Association.

Microsoft co-founder, billionaire Paul Allen, said that the research team from his company, Vulcan, searched 600 square miles of ocean using information discovered by a Navy historian who found records of the last recorded sighting of the Indianapolis. The Petrel, a 250-foot research ship, found the wreckage.

An image shot from a remotely operated underwater vehicle shows a spare parts box from USS Indianapolis on the floor of the Pacific Ocean.

The 16-person team on Allen's ship will continue to survey the full site and will conduct a live tour of the wreckage in a few weeks.