Some families found themselves on different sides of the North-South divide in 1953. North Korea had permitted almost no one to enter or leave its territory until this summer. A massive explosion caused a Russian nuclear submarine Kursk to sink to the bottom of the Barents Sea of Northern Europe. Russian officials said they heard tapping sounds from within the Kursk two days after the accident, leading them to believe that some of the crew may have survived the initial explosion. The world watched in stunned sadness as repeated attempts to raise the sunken sub failed.
Investigations continue into the cause of the explosion.
A U.S. spy sub that was also in the Barents Sea at the time, reported evidence that a torpedo aboard the Kursk misfired. Russian officials were criticized for taking too long to report the accident and to appeal for international help. British and Norwegian divers said they may have been able to rescue the trapped submariners before cold and hunger would have killed them. It is made up of a spiral strand of chemical substances made up of 3.2 billion links. More challenges lie ahead.