An iceberg calved from Greenland in Jan. 1912, 4 months prior to sinking on Apr 15 due to a once in 1400 yr close approach of the moon?
What sank the Titanic? Scientists point to moon - Technology & science - Space - msnbc.com
Greenland icebergs of the type that the Titanic struck generally become stuck in the shallow waters off Labrador and Newfoundland, and cannot resume moving southward until they have either melted enough to re-float or are freed by a high tide, Olson said.
So how was it that such a large number of icebergs had floated so far south that they were in the shipping lanes well south of Newfoundland that night?
Olson said a "once-in-many-lifetimes" event occurred on Jan. 4, 1912, when the moon and sun lined up in such a way that their gravitational pulls enhanced each other. At the same time, the moon's closest approach to Earth that January was the closest in 1,400 years, and the point of closest approach occurred within six minutes of the full moon. On top of that, Earth's closest approach to the sun in a year had happened just the previous day.
"This configuration maximized the moon's tide-raising forces on the Earth's oceans," Olson said. "That's remarkable."