⚓ Dead in the Water

Quick Start

Getting your first analysis in under 60 seconds:

• The map opens on the Gulf of Mexico / Florida Keys — one of the richest wreck zones in North America.
• Select a Water Type from the left panel to match your area of interest.
• Adjust the Search Radius slider (nautical miles).
• Click Run Depth Analysis — probability zones appear on the map.
• Browse the right sidebar for nearby documented wrecks.
• Click any wreck card to fly the map to that location.

Location Search

The search box uses OpenStreetMap's Nominatim geocoder to find any city, region, bay, or landmark worldwide — no API key required.

• Arrow keys — navigate suggestions
• Enter — select highlighted result
• Esc — close suggestions
• × button — clear the field

You can also paste Google Maps coordinates directly into the Latitude / Longitude fields and click Run Analysis.

Running Analysis

Click Run Depth Analysis to generate probability zones centered on the current map view. Coordinates auto-fill from map center.

The model considers:

• Water type and depth profile
• Historical current patterns for the region
• Sediment accumulation and burial rates
• Hurricane and storm surge displacement history
• Biological degradation and coral growth over time

After analysis, the Analysis Factors panel shows relative scores for each variable.

Water Types Explained

Shallow Coastal (0–30 ft)

High energy zone. Storm surge and tidal currents scatter debris widely. Expect large gold/rust zones. Biological growth rapid. Objects often partially surfaced or buried under shifting sand.

Reef / Rock Shelf

Objects snag on reef structure with minimal lateral drift. Coral encrustation over decades makes identification difficult. Tight concentration zone — small gold circle.

Continental Shelf (30–600 ft)

Moderate drift from bottom currents. Good preservation as depth increases. The classic treasure wreck zone — most Spanish galleons and Civil War era ships rest here.

Deep Water (600 ft+)

Near-zero drift. Sediment burial is primary factor. Objects rest extremely close to sinking point. Preservation is excellent due to low oxygen and temperature.

River / Delta

Heavy silting — vessels often completely buried within decades. Seasonal flooding migrates channel and debris field. Search upstream of historical channel bends.

Great Lakes

Freshwater dramatically reduces biological degradation. Wrecks from the 1800s often remain remarkably intact. Low current except near straits. Excellent preservation environment.

Probability Zones

Three concentric zones appear after running analysis:

■ Gold Zone — Primary Concentration

Highest probability debris field. Heavy items (cannon, anchors, coin chests) concentrate here. Labeled with estimated probability percentage (typically 60–80%).

■ Rust Zone — Secondary Scatter

Lighter materials carried outward by currents or storm events. Wood, rigging, ceramics. Probability 30–50%.

■ Slate Zone — Outer Dispersal

Marginal zone. Very light materials, current-carried artifacts. Probability 10–25%. Wide coverage in high-energy water types.

Drift Path Overlay

After running analysis, toggle Drift Path in the overlays section to show the estimated trajectory of debris scatter from the analysis center point.

The drift path is a directional arrow showing the dominant current vector for the selected water type. Animated dashes indicate current flow direction.

In river and delta environments, the drift path follows channel migration patterns. In coastal zones, it reflects predominant longshore drift direction.

Placing a Wreck Marker

Drop up to 2 hypothetical wreck points anywhere on the map to model where their debris field would have scattered by today.

1. Fill in Ship Name, Year Sunk, and Cargo Type in the left panel.
2. Click + Click Map to Place Wreck — the button turns red and the cursor changes.
3. Click anywhere on the map to drop the marker.
4. A scatter radius and drift arrow appear around the placed marker.
5. Click the marker for details. Remove with the popup's Remove button.

The scatter model adjusts based on cargo weight: gold concentrates tightly, general goods scatter broadly.

Wreck & Salvage Records

The right sidebar contains 80+ pre-loaded records spanning every major US maritime region.

• Filter by name, region, or cargo using the search field
• Use the tag buttons to filter by type: Treasure, Warship, Salvaged, Unknown
• Click any card to fly the map to that wreck's coordinates
• External links open Wikipedia or NOAA resources for deeper research

Record types: Treasure (known valuable cargo), Warship (military vessel), Salvaged (already recovered), Unknown (cargo disputed or unconfirmed).

Known Wrecks Overlay

Toggle Known Wrecks in Map Overlays to show anchor icons (⚓) at documented wreck locations.

Click any anchor marker for a popup with the ship's name, year, cargo, and historical notes. Links to Wikipedia and NOAA resources are included where available.

Salvage sites ($ markers) indicate locations with documented recovery operations, both completed and ongoing.

Shipping Lanes

Historical shipping lane overlays show the primary trade routes where wrecks are most densely concentrated:

• Spanish Main Route — Havana to Seville via Florida Straits
• Atlantic Coastal Route — Colonial and Civil War era traffic
• Great Lakes Commercial Route — 19th century grain and iron ore trade
• Pacific Coast Route — Gold Rush era California traffic
• Gulf Coastal Route — Cotton and sugar trade lanes

Wrecks cluster near route intersections, shallow passages, and historically storm-prone segments.

Save & Load Sessions

Save your research state as a .json file and reload it in any future session.

Save (↓): Downloads a .json file containing your coordinates, water type, depth, radius, placed wreck markers, field notes, and timestamp.

Load (↑): Opens a file picker. Select a previously saved .json file to restore all fields, rebuild markers, and re-run analysis automatically.

Pro Tips

• Start with the Continental Shelf water type for general Atlantic coast research — it covers most of the classic treasure wreck zones.
• For the 1715 Spanish Treasure Fleet, set coordinates to ~27.5°N, -80.3°W and use Shallow Coastal type.
• Great Lakes wrecks are best researched with the Lakes type — freshwater preservation means even wooden hulls survive intact for centuries.
• The Mississippi River wrecks (Sultana, Arabia) require River/Delta type with high depth — they're buried 20–30 feet below current farmland.
• Use field notes to record dive reports, research sources, and coordinate comparisons across sessions.
• Click any probability zone ring to get a detailed explanation of the modeling factors that shaped it.
• Adjust the radius slider to match your research scope — 5nm for reef dives, 30–50nm for open water research areas.

Sharing the App

Dead in the Water is a single, self-contained HTML file. Share it by:

• Emailing the .html file directly
• Sharing via Dropbox, Google Drive, or any file host
• Hosting on any static web server — GitHub Pages, Netlify, etc.

No installation required. No API keys. No server. The recipient opens the .html file in any modern browser and the full app runs immediately.

Internet connection is only required for: map tile rendering and the city search geocoder. All data, analysis, and overlays work fully offline.