A mystery shipwreck with an uncertain identity operator has been found in the fish - filled oceans near Australia .

The wreck was found last workweek 60 meter ( 197 feet ) beneath the wafture of the northwesterly coast of Western Australia after the Australian Institute of Marine Science ( AIMS ) ship , theSolander , noted some unusual bodily process on their echo sounder .

“ The ship ’s captain mark the strange formation on the echosounder while we were traveling between sites , ” Miles Parsons , an AIMS Marine Acoustics researcher , toldBusiness Insider . “We came back to take a closer look and were able-bodied to map out it in incredible particular using raise multibeam survey technology onboard . It was reasonably clear this was not a natural formation . ”

From bow to stern , the ship measures around 37 metre ( 121 human foot ) long . The wreck continue unidentified as of yet , so AIMS have brawl the help of marine experts from the Western Australian Museum to identify it . Most unusually , there are no phonograph recording suggesting that a ship of this size had sunk   in these water , but the researchers do have a sealed number of other clues to work with .

For one thing , it ’s in relatively full shape with an intact hull . The ship also seems to be comparatively modern   –   this is certainly not a pirate   touch ship . It ’s made of sword , with sure feature suggesting it could have been a fishing vessel from around the seventies or 1980s . However , the research worker still say it ’s too former to make any definitive statements .

Parsons added : " There was a lot of fervor going on as the object pop up on our screen , and then there were a hatful of earphone calls go back and forward endeavor to puzzle out out what it was – was it maybe a shipwreck ? "

As you may see from the   AIMS television footage of the discovery above , the wreck has since become a hub of nautical life activeness , becoming home to numerous different species of fish .

The researchers and authorities are go on quiet   about the position of the crash , as it might be listed as a heritage site . Australia hasa large numberof historic shipwreck protected zone that are keep for both recreational and scientific purposes . Divers are free to habituate these surface area for recreational intent , but no relic can be removed from the wreck site .

as , the waters around role of Australia areno stranger to scavengers . Although primarily a concern in the Java Sea to Australia ’s north , sea - fare pack rat are known to enhance World War Two wreck from the seabed for sell off the metal .