ROBERT BALLARD Hand Signed 3X5 CARD . is Hand Signed by ROBERT BALLARD . %100 Authentic Autograph . The Autograph is BOLD & looks Amazing . photo is in GREAT CONDITION . RARE Autograph CARD .  Will be Well packaged & shipped SUPER FAST . Nice Autograph photo. I will ship to you . The SAME DAY you pay :) YES .. I even ship on Saturday . Payment MUST be made in 4 days or less after this listing ends ! Combined s&h is $1 Extra each additional listing . In the 4 day Period . Check out my other Low Priced autographs & my Fantastic feedback :) . Ad my STORE to your FAVORITES LIST . I do list NEW Autographs EVERY DAY ! Upon request . I do offer my Lifetime Guarantee COA . Just message me at Checkout. Thank you :) Amanda

(born June 30, 1942) is an American retired Navy officer and a professor ofoceanographyat theUniversity of Rhode Islandwho is most noted for his work inunderwater archaeology:maritime archaeologyandarchaeology of shipwrecks. He is best known for the discoveries of thewrecksof theRMSTitanicin 1985, thebattleshipBismarckin 1989, and the aircraft carrierUSSYorktownin 1998. He discovered the wreck ofJohn F. Kennedy'sPT-109in 2002 and visitedBiuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, who saved its crew. Despite his long successes in shipwrecks, Ballard considers his most important discovery to be that ofhydrothermal vents. Ballard has also established theJASON Projectand leads ocean exploration on the research vesselE/VNautilus Marine geology Ballard's first dive in a submersible was in theBen Franklin(PX-15)in 1969 off the coast ofFloridaduring a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution expedition. In summer 1970, he began a field mapping project of theGulf of Mainefor hisdoctoral dissertation. It used an air gun that sent sound waves underwater to determine the underlying structure of the ocean floor and the submersibleAlvin, which was used to find and recover a sample from thebedrock.[citation needed] Ballard was geologist diver inAlvinduringProject FAMOUS, which explored the medianrift valleyof theMid-Atlantic Ridgein 1974. During the summer of 1975, Ballard participated in a joint French-American expedition calledPheresearching forhydrothermal ventsover theMid-Atlantic Ridge, but the expedition did not find any active vents. On the Galapagosspreading centereast of the islands a 1977 exploration byAlvinfound deep-sea hydrothermal vents and surrounding biology communities based on chemosynthesis. Ballard was a participating diver. The 1979RISE projectexpedition on theEast Pacific Risewest of Mexico at 21N was aided by deep-towed still camera sleds that were able to take pictures of the ocean floor, making it easier to find hydrothermal vent locations. WhenAlvininspected one of the sites the deep-tow located, the scientists observed black "smoke" billowing out of the vents, something not observed at theGalpagosRift. Ballard and geophysicistJean Francheteauwent down inAlvinthe day after theblack smokerswere first observed. They were able to take an accurate temperature reading of the active vent (the previous dive's thermometer had melted), and recorded a temperature of 350C (623 662 1,122R). They continued searching for more vents along the East Pacific Rise between 1980 and 1982. Marine archaeology While Ballard had been interested in the sea since an early age, his work atWoods Holeand hisscuba divingexperiences offMassachusettsspurred his interest in shipwrecks and their exploration. His work in the Navy had involved assisting in the development of small, unmanned submersibles that could be tethered to and controlled from a surface ship, and were outfitted with lighting, cameras, and manipulator arms. As early as 1973, he saw this as way of searching for the wreck of theTitanic. In 1977, he led his first expedition, which was unsuccessful. RMSTitanic Ballard in 1999 with a VHS copy of the filmTitanic In summer 1985, Ballard was aboard the French research shipLe Surot, which was using theside scan sonarSARto search for theTitanic'swreck. When the French ship was recalled, he transferred onto a ship fromWoods Hole, theR/VKnorr. Unbeknownst to some, this trip was financed by theU.S. Navyfor secret reconnaissance of the wreckage of two Navynuclear poweredattack submarines, theUSSScorpionand theUSSThresher, which sank in the 1960s, and not for theTitanic.[10]In 1982, Ballard had approached the Navy about his new deep sea underwater robot craft, theArgo, and his search for theTitanic.The Navy, while not interested in funding Ballard'sTitanicsearch on its own, ultimately concluded thatArgowas their best chance to locate their missing submarines, and agreed to finance his expedition on the condition that he first investigated the two submarines, assessed the state of their nuclear reactors, and determined if their long submergence had cause any radioactive environmental impact.He was placed on temporary active duty in the Navy, in charge of finding and investigating the wrecks, after which he would be free to use any remaining time and resources to hunt for theTitanic. After their missions for the Navy,Knorrarrived on site on August 22, 1985,and deployedArgo. When they searched for the two submarines, Ballard and his team discovered that they had imploded from the immense pressure at depth. It littered thousands of pieces of debris all over the ocean floor. Following the large trail of debris led them directly to the remnants of both vessels and made them significantly easier for them to locate than if they were to search for the hulls directly. He already knew that theTitanicimploded from pressure as well, much the same way the two submarines did, and concluded that it too must have left a scattered debris trail. Using that lesson, they hadArgosweep back and forth across the ocean floor looking for theTitanic'sdebris trail.They took shifts monitoring the video feed fromArgoas it searched the ocean floor two miles below In the early morning hours of September 1, 1985, observers noted anomalies on the otherwise smooth ocean floor. At first, it was pockmarks, like small craters from impacts. Eventually, debris was sighted as the rest of the team was awakened. Finally, a boiler was sighted, and soon after that, the hull was found. Ballard's team made a general search of theTitanic'sexterior, noting its condition. Most significantly, they confirmed that it had split in two, and that the stern was in far worse shape than the bow. They did not have much time to explore, as others were waiting to takeKnorron other scientific pursuits, but his fame was now assured. He originally planned to keep the exact location a secret to prevent anyone from claiming prizes from it. He considered the site a cemetery, and refused to desecrate it by removing artifacts. On July 12, 1986, Ballard and his team returned on boardAtlantis IIto make the first detailed study of the wreck. This time, he broughtAlvin. It was accompanied byJason Junior, a small remotely operated vehicle that could fit through small openings to see into the ship's interior. Although the first dive (taking over two hours) encountered technical problems, subsequent ones were far more successful, and produced a detailed photographic record of the wreck's condition. In 1988, Ballard published a book,Discovery Of The Titanic: Exploring The Greatest Of All Lost Ships,ISBN0-446-51385-7and he later recounted the specifics of the expedition forNational Geographicin a video The vast majority of the relics retrieved by various groups, not including Ballard, from RMSTitanicwere owned byPremier Exhibitionswhich filed for bankruptcy in 2016. In late August 2018, the groups vying for ownership of the 5,500 relics included one by museums in England and Northern Ireland with assistance from filmmakerJames Cameronand some financial support fromNational Geographic.Ballard told the news media that he favored this bid since it would ensure that the memorabilia would be permanently displayed inBelfastand inGreenwich. A decision as to the outcome was to be made by aUnited States district courtjudge. Other wrecks Bismarck Ballard undertook an even more daunting task when he and his team searched off the coast of France for the German BattleshipBismarckin 1989, using an ocean-crawling robot. The 15,000 foot deep water in which it sankis 4,000 feet deeper than that where theTitanicsank. He attempted to determine whether it had been sunk by the British or was scuttled by its own crew. Three weeks after the expedition however, personal tragedy struck him when his 21-year-old son, Todd, who had aided him in the search, was killed in a car accident Ballard later published a book about the quest,The Discovery of the Bismarck(1990)The discovery was also documented forNational Geographicin a 1989James CameronvideoSearch for the Battleship Bismarckwhich indicated that the ship had been damaged by torpedoes and shells from British ships.[19]The actual cause of the sinking, however, was sabotage of the underwater valves by the onboard crew, according to Ballard, who said, "we found a hull that appears whole and relatively undamaged by the descent and impact". Film maker Cameron, however, said that his crew's examination of the wreckage indicated that the Bismarck would have sunk eventually even if it had not been scuttled. Lusitania In 1993, Ballard investigated the wreck ofRMSLusitaniaoff the Irish coast. It had been struck by a torpedo, whose explosion was followed by a second, much larger one. The wreck had beendepth chargedby theRoyal Navyseveral years after the sinking, and had also been damaged by other explorers, making a forensic analysis difficult. He found no evidence of boiler explosion and he speculated the ignition of coal dust inside the ship caused a "massive, uncontrollable [second] explosion". Others have questioned this hypothesis, some suggesting that the ship had been sabotaged by the British. Ballard found no evidence to support this claim.Some experts have indicated that it was, in fact, boiler explosions that caused the ship to sink so quickly, in a mere 18 minutes Ballard published a book about the discovery,Exploring the Lusitania: Probing the Mysteries of the Sinking that Changed History, also titledRobert Ballard's Lusitaniain some markets, with co-author Spencer Dunmore Battle of Guadalcanal In 1992, Ballard and his team visited the sites of many wrecks ofWorld War IIin thePacific. Doing so, he discovered the wreck of theIJNKirishima.[25]His bookLost Ships ofGuadalcanallocates and photographs many of the vessels sunk atIronbottom Sound, the strait betweenGuadalcanal Islandand theFloridasin theSolomon Islands. USSYorktown On May 19, 1998, Ballard found the wreck ofYorktown, sunk at theBattle of Midway. Found 3 miles (5km) beneath the surface, it was photographed. PT-109 In 2002, theNational Geographic Societyand Ballard fielded a ship with remote vehicles to theSolomon Islands. They succeeded in finding a torpedo tube and the forward section from the shipwreck ofJohn F. Kennedy'sPT-109which was rammed in 1943 by the Japanese destroyerAmagirioffGhizo Island.The visit also brought to light the identity of islandersBiuku Gasa and Eroni Kumanawho had received little recognition for finding the shipwrecked crew after searching for days in theirdugout canoe. A TV special and a book were produced, and Ballard spoke at theJohn F. Kennedy Libraryin 2005. Institute for Exploration In the 1990s Ballard founded theInstitute for Exploration, which specializes in deep-sea archaeology and deep-sea geology. It joined forces in 1999 with the Mystic Aquarium located inMystic, Connecticut. They are a part of the non-profit Sea Research Foundation, Inc. Center for Ocean Exploration and Archaeological Oceanography In 2003, Ballard started theCenter for Ocean Exploration and Archaeological Oceanography, a research program at the University of Rhode Island's Graduate School of Oceanography. Black Sea In 1976,Willard Bascomsuggested that the deep,anoxic watersof theBlack Seamight have preserved ships from antiquity because typical wood-devouring organisms could not survive there. At a depth of 150 m, it contains insufficient oxygen to support most familiar biological life forms. Originally a land-locked fresh water lake, the Black Sea was flooded with salt water from theMediterranean Seaduring theHolocene. The influx of salt water essentially smothered the fresh water below it because a lack of internal motion and mixing meant that no fresh oxygen reached the deep waters,creating ameromicticbody of water. The anoxic environment, which is hostile to many biological organisms that destroy wood in the oxygenated waters, provides an excellent testing site for deep water archaeological survey. In a series of expeditions, a team of marine archaeologists led by Ballard identified what appeared to be ancient shorelines, freshwater snail shells, and drowned river valleys in roughly 300 feet (100 m) of water off the Black Sea coast of modernTurkey.Radiocarbondating of freshwater mollusk remains indicated an age of about 7,000 years The team discovered three ancient wrecks to the west of the town ofSinopat depths of 100 m. Wreck A and Wreck C probably date to the late Roman period (2nd4th century A.D.), while Wreck B probably dates to the Byzantine period (5th to 7th century A.D.) To the east of Sinop, the team discovered a remarkably well-preserved wreck at a 320 m depth, in the Black Sea's deep anoxic waters. The vessel's entire hull and cargo are intact, buried in sediments. Its deck structures are also intact, including a mast rising some 11 m into the water column. Radiocarbon dating of wood from the wreck provides a date of 410520 A.D. It has been named "Sinop D" by the Ballard team In 2000, the team conducted an expedition that focused on the exploration of the sea bed about 1530km west of Sinop, and an additional deep-water survey east and north of the peninsula. Their project had several goals. They sought to discover whether human habitation sites could be identified on the ancient submerged landscape, they examined the sea-bed for shipwrecks (where they found Sinop A-D), to test the hypothesis that the anoxic waters below 200 m would protect shipwrecks from the expected biological attacks on organic components, and to seek data about an ancient trade route between Sinop and theCrimeaindicated by terrestrial archaeological remains Although Sinop served as a primary trade center in the Black Sea, the wrecks were located west of the trade route predicted by the prevalence of Sinopian ceramics on the Crimean peninsula. On wrecks A-C, mounds of distinctive carrot-shaped shipping jars, calledamphorae, were found. They were of a style associated with Sinop and retained much of their original stacking pattern on the sea floor. The jars may have carried a variety of archetypal Black Sea products such as olive oil, honey, wine or fish sauce but the contents are presently unknown because no artifacts were recovered from any of these wreck sites in 2000. The wreck found provided the team with vast information about both the technological changes and trade that occurred in the Black Sea during a period of political, social and economic transition through their study of the ship's construction techniques. Studies show that in Sinop during the Byzantine era, they had developed long-distance trading as early as 4500 BC. Sea-trading on the Black Sea was most intense during the period of late antiquity, between the 2nd and 7th centuries ADThe examination of the four shipwrecks found by Ballard and his team provide the direct evidence for Black Sea maritime trade so well attested by the distribution of ceramics on land The video images of Shipwreck A that were taken show a wall of shipping jars standing about 2 m above the seabed. The amphorae highest on the mound had fallen over without displacing those still standing in the rows beneath them, and it is likely that the ship settled upright on the sea-bed, gradually being both buried in and filled with sediment as exposed wood was devoured by the larva or theshipworm. Shipwreck B also consisted of a large pile of amphorae but several types are visible, as are multiple timbers protruding from within the mound and on it. In addition to the Sinop-styles jars, several amphorae similar to examples excavated on theYassiadaByzantine shipwreck and dating from the 5th to late 6th century AD are present. Two discrete and mostly buried piles of carrot-shaped shipping jars comprise shipwreck C. The team's visit to the site was short and was intended primarily to test survey methodology for deep-water procedures Shipwreck D provided the team with an unprecedented opportunity to document hull construction during a time of transition. When observing the sonar signature of Shipwreck D, a long, slender upright feature on the seabed, transformed itself into a wooden mast. Elements rarely present on shallower shipwreck sites are beautifully preserved 200 m below the surface. Disappointingly for ship scholars and historians of technology, there are few indications of how the planks of Sinop D are held together. There are nomortise and tenonfastenings, and no sewing. Shipwreck D may be one of the earliestlateen-rigged ships to be studied by archaeologists. The angle of the mast and the lack of fittings on it suggest that a lateen sail is the most likely configuration for such a small vessel The Institute for Exploration Black Sea expeditions relied on remote sensing with side-scan sonar in shallow and deep water to identify potential archaeological sites examined byROVs. The hypothesis that the anoxic waters of the Black Sea would allow extraordinary organic preservation is borne out by the discovery of Sinop D, the 1,500-year-old shipwreck with excellent preservation of features above the sediment layer According to a report inNew Scientistmagazine (May 4, 2002, p.13), the researchers found an underwater delta south of theBosporus. There was evidence for a strong flow of fresh water out of the Black Sea in the8th millennium BC. Ballard's research has contributed to the debate over theBlack Sea deluge theory