Scientists find sunken German WW II warship off Norway

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The wreckage of a German warship sunk by a British submarine during World War II has been discovered 11 nautical miles off Norway, it was reported Monday.

The whereabouts of where the Karlsruhe came to rest on the sea bottom had remained a mystery for 80 years.

Scientists identified the ship from images and sonar scans of its hull and the position of its gun turrets, Reuters reports.

An element of sunken German WWII warship cruiser "Karlsruhe" that had been observed 13 nautical miles from Kristiansand in Norway, according to Statnett, is seen in this undated photo obtained by Reuters September 7, 2020. (Statnett/Handout via REUTERS)

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"After all these years, we finally know where the graveyard to this important warship is," said Frode Kvaloe, archaeologist and researcher at the Norwegian Maritime Museum.

“You can find Karlsruhe’s fate in history books, but no one has known exactly where the ship sunk,” Kvaloe added, according to Reuters.

Built in the 1920s, the 571-foot-long ship was later fitted with a Nazi-era swastika that was also captured in subsea images taken by Statnett and its partners, and first televised by Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, Reuters reports.

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An element of sunken German WWII warship cruiser "Karlsruhe" that had been observed 13 nautical miles from Kristiansand in Norway, according to Statnett, is seen in this undated photo obtained by Reuters September 7, 2020. (Statnett/Handout via REUTERS)

State-owned Statnett operates Norway’s underwater power cable. Its workers first came upon the wreckage three years ago.

The Karlsruhe was part of the Nazi German force that invaded Norway on April 9, 1940.

On its return to sea it was torpedoed by the British submarine HMS Truant.

A German captain then ordered the sinking of the heavily damaged vessel.

An element of sunken German WWII warship cruiser "Karlsruhe" that had been observed 13 nautical miles from Kristiansand in Norway, according to Statnett, is seen in this undated photo obtained by Reuters September 7, 2020. (Statnett/Handout via REUTERS)

Karlsruhe rests three-tenths of mile below sea level with cannons pointing menacingly into the sea, Statnett reported.

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With the main battery of nine cannons in three triple turrets, this was the largest and most fearsome ship in the attack group on Norway.

A sonar scan of sunken German WWII warship cruiser "Karlsruhe" that had been observed 13 nautical miles from Kristiansand in Norway, according to Statnett, is seen in this undated handout obtained by Reuters September 7, 2020. (Statnett/Handout via REUTERS)