SS United States Becomes World’s Largest Artificial Reef

The SS United States, the nearly 1,000-foot ocean liner that set a trans-Atlantic speed record in 1952, was deliberately sunk about 22 nautical miles off Florida’s Gulf Coast on Nov. 11, a day earlier than planned because of forecast bad weather. After years docked in Philadelphia and environmental preparation in Mobile, Alabama, the ship was scuttled over several hours and will become the world’s largest artificial reef and a destination for divers. The sinking drew spectators and followed a dismissed lawsuit seeking to stop it; the ship’s distinctive smokestacks had been removed for a planned museum. The Fox 5 travel segment and the opinion article’s political commentary are unrelated to the sinking and have been omitted.