By Tim Binnall
A strange international dispute has erupted between research groups searching for explorer Captain James Cook's legendary lost ship, the HMS Endeavor, as one organization says that the wreck has been found while the other has called that conclusion into question. The odd disagreement reportedly arose last week when the chief executive of the Australian Maritime Museum announced that the remains of the vessel, which famously spent three years exploring the Pacific and discovered the east coast of Australia in 1770, had finally been found in the waters off Rhode Island. However, their partner in the pursuit of the Endeavor, the Rhode Island Marine Archaeology Project (RIMAP), quickly disputed the exciting news.
In response to the Australian Maritime Museum's Kevin Sumption boldly declaring that "the final resting place of one of the most important and contentious vessels in Australia’s maritime history" had been located, RIMAP released a statement wherein they called the announcement "premature." Noting that the wreck in question is undoubtedly a promising candidate for the Endeavor, they stressed that "there has been no indisputable data found to prove the site is that iconic vessel." Promising to provide a full report to the public once their study is complete, RIMAP lambasted the museum for announcing the discovery, arguing that it was fueled by "Australian emotions or politics" rather than science.
For their part, the museum did not back down from their assessment and it would seem that, for now, the two sides are at an impasse, which is particularly disheartening because the groups have been searching for the Endeavor together for a staggering two decades. To that end, the root of the argument may actually be over who had the right to announce the discovery of the lost vessel in the first place as RIMAP noted that the surprising declaration constituted a "breach of contract" by the museum, which disputed that assertion. Should scientists eventually conclude that the ship is indeed the Endeavor, one hopes that the groups can put this messiness behind them and share in the glory of the long-awaited discovery.