New 3D images show wreck of USS Monitor, iconic Civil War ship that sank in 1862

March 9, 2026

TL;DR

New 3D images provide a detailed view of the USS Monitor, an iconic Civil War ironclad ship that sank over 160 years ago.
An interactive digital timeline by NOAA and Northrop Grumman offers evolving 3D views of the Monitor from its construction to its present-day wreck.
The shipwreck, located 240 feet deep off the coast of North Carolina, has become a thriving reef ecosystem.
High-resolution images captured using advanced sonar technology reveal the Monitor is in "fantastic shape."
The USS Monitor was the U.S. Navy's prototype ironclad, designed to counter the CSS Virginia, and famously battled it at Hampton Roads.
The ship sank in a severe storm on New Year's Eve in 1862, with 16 sailors lost.
Remnants of the Monitor were discovered in 1973, and the site was designated the country's first national marine sanctuary.
The Mariners' Museum and Park manages the wreck site with NOAA, and conservation projects are ongoing.

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