For the first time ever, images of the ship involved in the most devastating shipwreck in Bay Area history were revealed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Over a century ago, the S.S. City of Rio de Janeiro crashed into jagged rocks in the vicinity of the Golden Gate Bridge and sank, killing 128 passengers and crew, mostly Chinese and Japanese immigrants. This steamship is often referred to as "Bay Area's Titanic" because of the huge loss of life caused by her sinking.

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After two years of study and exploration, NOAA found this wreck of the S.S. City of Rio de Janeiro covered in mud some 287 feet below of the San Francisco Bay.

The ship's position has been known to scientists since the 1980s when salvagers first discovered the wreck.

NOAA in collaboration with Hibbard Inshore and Bay Marine Services used a remotely operated underwater drone equipped with sonar developed by Coda Octopus to scour the seabed for the wreck. This mission produced the very first 3D images of the City of Rio and shows the ship's remains enveloped by abyssal darkness in waters just outside the Golden Gate Bridge.

The team also stumbled upon another shipwreck, the S.S. City of Chester, which was rediscovered last year.

The sonar survey revealed amazing clarity and detail of the shipwrecks, said lead researcher Robert Schwemmer. It also shed light on how both ships sank and what happened to them after their destruction

NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Maritime Heritage Program has tracked down the resting place of 200 sunken ships, including four never found before.

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