A year ago on June 18, the Oceangate Exploration company's "Titan" deep-sea submersible imploded in the deep sea, killing all five passengers. There are still many unanswered questions that may never be answered.

    U.S. Coast Guard officials issued a statement last week saying they were not prepared to release their findings before the anniversary. The investigation needs more time, and public hearings have been postponed for at least two months.

    The gruesome and harrowing sight sent a chill through the deep-sea diving community, and soon after the accident, Oceangate, the company that launched the Titanic's wreck Tours, announced that it was shutting down - not surprisingly, given the death of its founder.

    With the closing of the Ocean Gate, Titanic wreck Tours are no more. But instead of bringing the industry to its knees, the incident has provided an opportunity for other submersible operators to redouble their efforts on safety.

    A leading submarine operator is eager to prove that the Titan deep-sea submersible is not up to industry standards and that Oceangate is a rogue startup that failed to meet safety standards. The operator is already planning to restart Titanic Tours.

    "If anything positive can be drawn from this situation, it is further investment in deep-sea submersibles (safety aspects)," industry leader Triton Submarines said in a statement.

    The quest continues

    In fact, just days after the Ocean-Gate disaster, real estate billionaire Larry Conner contacted Triton and asked them to build a submarine that would convince the world that submarine travel could be done safely even in the deep ocean where the wreck of the Titanic was located.

    "I want to show people around the world that while the ocean is very powerful, it can also be beautiful and enjoyable and really change your life if you do it the right way," Connor said.

    Before the accident, industry experts had warned of the safety risks of the submersible. But Stockton Rush, the company's founder, believes that while not as good as titanium, carbon fiber hulls are still safe.

    "At some point, safety is just pure waste," Rush once claimed. "I mean, if you just want to be safe, don't get out of bed, don't get in the car, don't do anything." Rush apparently ignored the distinction between "quality and quantity" and paid a heavy price for it.

    In fact, deep-sea exploration technology is still in its infancy, and the Titan incident did not stop the pace of human exploration of the deep sea. Philippe Brown, founder of luxury adventure travel company Brown and Hudson, said there was still a waiting list for his company to take deep-sea trips after the accident, and that business had even picked up.

    "There's always an appetite for things that push boundaries," Brown said in an interview Monday. But he also points out that things have changed, too, and that people have become much more sensitive to risk, not just for things like climbing Mount Everest, but more broadly, including sailing trips.

    The Explorers Club, based in New York City, USA, is a group that supports research, conservation and scientific exploration. Richard Garriott, president of the Club, believes that technological progress has ushered in a golden age of deep-sea exploration, and that the pace of human exploration of the ocean will not stop even after a tragedy like Titan.

    Veteran deep sea explorer Katy Croff Bell said Titan's implosion accident reinforced the importance of following industry standards and conducting rigorous testing.