Joe Reschke 8E #199 December 2013Research PaperThere are approximately 3-4 million shipwrecks in the world. Shipwrecks are widespread especially in the Great Lakes and Oceans. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum estimates that approximately 6,000 ships are wrecked at the bottom of the Great Lakes. The United Nations estimates around 3 million shipwrecks on the ocean floor. The great lakes, visible from space, constitute the largest freshwater system in the world. The lakes are home to 3,500 species of plants and animals, 170 species of fish, contain 21% of the world's fresh water, and cover 95,160 square miles. They are home to around 6,000 shipwrecks. - Chart by: David Swayne of Great Lakes History.com This chart represents the distribution of shipwrecks on various lakes. It shows us that most shipwrecks that occur in lakes occur in large lakes. The first vessel (excluding canoes) to travel on the Great Lakes, the Griffon, was wrecked. He was wrecked in a violent storm on Lake Huron. The ocean covers 70% of the Earth's surface. The largest ocean on Earth is the Pacific Ocean. It covers around 30% of the Earth's surface and the Pacific Ocean contains around 25,000 different islands, many more than are found in the Earth's other oceans and there are around 350 species of sharks in all of the oceans. Have you ever seen a shipwreck and wondered how it sank or just wondered how ships in general sank? There are many reasons why boats sink. Ships are made to stay above water, so when a wave brings water over the boat it will most likely cause it to sink. One of the most common ways for a boat to sink is when a boat is in a heavy storm and is overwhelmed by waves causing the water to reach the center of the chart......while at Pearl Harbor. Her bow was severed and her command room destroyed. The main part of the ship and the stern were still intact. Shaw was temporarily repaired and returned to battle in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands. The ship wrecked again in January 1943. She ran aground near New Caledonia and this time returned for major repairs. After being repaired again, "Reschke 7" was sent back to the war zone in October or 1943. Its demolition was not yet finished. In December 1943, USS Shaw was hit by an air attack near Cape Gloucester. Once again she had to turn back for major repairs. Following these repairs, Shaw participated in the invasion of Guam. Subsequently, in October 1944–1945 she escorted Pacific convoys to liberate Luzon and other parts of the Philippines. When the Pacific War ended, the Shaw was scrapped.“Reschke 8”