On July 8, a team of Norwegian researchers lowered a specially designed ROV, Aegir-6000, to the sunken 400-foot long wreck that rests about a mile deep on the ocean floor, about 200 miles north of the Norway mainland. They found around 100 Becquerel (Bq) of radiation per liter, as opposed to around 0.001 Bq per liter elsewhere in the Norwegian Sea.
But with the remote-controlled mini-sub they were able to come closer than before to the wreck and were able to obtain more accurate readings, NRK reported.
"The new surveys," said Ingar Amundsen, head of Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety, "are important for understanding the pollution risk posed by Komsomolets."
However, on April 7, during a secret surveillance tour, fire brook out in the engine room, which would eventually lead to the sinking of the ship and the death of 42 of its 69-member crew. Most died due to the exposure to radiation while they were waiting for the Soviet navy to set them free.
Komsomolets has at least two torpedoes carrying plutonium-tipped warheads on board, and with a half-life of 24,000 years, the plutonium poses a threat for many years to come.
Hilde Elise Heldal of the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research said she was not overly surprised by the high radiation levels, given the fact that in the past also higher levels of radioactive pollution were recorded. "The results are preliminary," she told TV2. "We will examine the samples thoroughly when we get home."
She said in a press statement that monitoring is important "so that we have updated knowledge about the pollution situation in the area around the wreck," and "to ensure consumer confidence in the Norwegian fishing industry."