152 WSJ. MAGAZINE
“ON THE UPPER SHELF are my Army and Navy caps.
During the Vietnam War I volunteered to be a combat
infantry officer. Then I was transferred into the Navy,
where I remained for 30 years, primarily in naval
intelligence, doing highly classified missions. Most
people think of me as the guy who found the Titanic [in
1985]. That was a cover for a military operation, which
was recently declassified. I was actually exploring two
nuclear submarines we lost in the area. The caps are
sitting on a model of Alvin, a deep-diving submarine
that I landed on the Titanic, before sending a robot
down inside. Behind it is an oil painting of the Titanic.
On the lower shelf is a black smoker chimney, which we
discovered in the Pacific in 1979. They belch out a fluid
that’s hot enough to melt lead. That helped us explain
the chemistry of the world’s oceans. The cap and hood
on either side of the black smoker signify my academic
life—I have 22 honorary doctorates in addition to my
Ph.D.—and leaning against it is the Hubbard Medal
presented to me by the National Geographic Society.
Hanging on the mantel are two more medals, from the
Explorers Club. In the corner, that’s a tube worm in the
glass container. In 1977, we discovered a complex eco-
system of exotic creatures that had figured out, over
eons, how to duplicate photosynthesis in the darkness
of the ocean. This discovery helps explain the originof life on earth—and points to the high probability
of it existing on other planets, even within our own
solar system. The framed photo on top is of two of my
children—Todd, on the right, died in a car accident
when he was 20. Next to it is a cartoon I published in
National Geographic in 1981 that said, We’re no longer
going to send our bodies to the bottom of the ocean; we
are going to use telepresence, with advanced robotics.
My wife, a television producer, commissioned the art-
work in the front, which captures my existence—the
military, academic and exploring parts of my life. I’m
a Swiss Army knife in the sense that there are a lot of
blades.” —As told to Mark YarmPHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE ETHEREDGE
STILL LIFE
ROBERT BALLARD
The oceanographer and explorer shares a few of his favorite things.