WATCH: Rare video of 1986 dive through Titanic wreckage released by group on Cape Cod

Rare and in some cases never before publicly seen video of the 1986 dive through the wreckage of the Titanic has been released by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

The more than 80 minutes of footage on the WHOI’s YouTube channel chronicles some of the remarkable achievements of the dive led by Robert Ballard that marked the first time human eyes had seen the giant ocean liner since it struck an iceberg and sank in the frigid North Atlantic in April 1912. About 1,500 people died during the ship’s maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City.

A team from Massachusetts-based Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, in partnership with the French oceanographic exploration organization Institut français de recherche pour l’exploitation de la mer, discovered the final resting place of the ship in 12,400 feet (3,780 meters) of water on Sept. 1, 1985 using a towed underwater camera.

Nine months later, a WHOI team returned to the site in the famous three-person research submersible Alvin and the remotely-operated underwater exploration vehicle Jason Jr., which took iconic images of the ship’s interior.

“What is really special for me is these are moments of a rediscovery,” said Dana Yoerger, engineer, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. “This was the first time we saw this and it was breathtaking for us, I have to say.”

The video showed the word London still etched in the ruins. The anchor chain is frozen in time and a chandelier swayed in the current.

“You could really see how much had deteriorated and how much had retained its glory,” said Yoerger.

A photo of a re-creation of the grand staircase shows the Titanic’s splendor. Billed as the unsinkable ship on its maiden voyage it struck an iceberg. More than 1500 died, there were a little more than 700 survivors. Debris scattered the contents across the ocean floor.

“The natural action of the ocean is slowly reclaiming the ship,” said Yoerger.

He said the ship has deteriorated significantly since these images almost 40 years. The video, which often appears ghostly, provides the moment Titanic’s story was brought back to life.

“You’ll see lots of video taken in the decades since, but this is the moment of discovery. It’s very special for us,” said Yoerger.

Woods Hole premiered the video online Wednesday evening accompanied with a text chat with viewers. The organization released it in celebration of the movie Titanic’s 25-th anniversary re-release in theaters.

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