SS United States sinks today: Live stream time, location, 45-minute operation explained as historic ship carrying presidents and Hollywood stars becomes world's largest artificial reef

SS United States sinking today: The SS United States once carried US presidents, Hollywood stars and even the Mona Lisa across the Atlantic. Now, the historic ocean liner is preparing to go beneath the water for good. The 990-foot ship is scheduled to be sunk off Florida's Gulf Coast on November 11, where it will become the world's largest artificial reef.

When will SS United States live stream start today

The operation is due to begin at 1 p.m. CT, about 22 nautical miles southwest of Destin. Crews expect the sinking to take around 45 minutes.

The ship has quite a legacy to leave behind. It is more than 100 feet longer than the RMS Titanic and still holds the transatlantic speed record it set during its maiden voyage in 1952. It reached a maximum speed of 38 knots, or 44 miles per hour, a record that has yet to be broken.

SS United States: From presidents and movie stars to an underwater attraction

The SS United States was once a favourite of prominent passengers travelling across the Atlantic. Former presidents Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower sailed aboard the vessel, along with John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy. Even young Bill Clinton travelled on the ship while heading to Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, as per Pensacola News Journal report.

Its passenger list included some of the biggest names in entertainment, among them Marilyn Monroe, Walt Disney, Marlon Brando, Coco Chanel, Cary Grant, Elizabeth Taylor and John Wayne.

The ship also reportedly carried Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa to the United States in 1963. The painting had been loaned by the Louvre in Paris for exhibitions in Washington and New York.

That chapter of the vessel's history is now giving way to something entirely different, life as an underwater attraction for divers.

Sinking of the SS United States: Why the SS United States is being sunk off Florida

Okaloosa County bought the ship in October 2024 for $10.1 million, with plans to turn it into an artificial reef. Before that, the ocean liner had spent nearly 30 years docked in Philadelphia.

It was later moved to Mobile, Alabama, where environmental remediation work was carried out to prepare it for sinking.

The new reef will be about 12 nautical miles from the USS Oriskany, another major artificial reef off Pensacola. Officials hope the two wrecks will bring more divers to Northwest Florida and help the region become a premier diving destination, according to the PNJ report.

How crews will bring the historic ship underwater

The sinking will be carefully controlled. Crews plan to open valves connected to the vessel's original seawater intake pipes, allowing water to enter the hull gradually. And the process is designed to give marine life a safe route through the wreckage.

The ship is expected to settle at a depth of around 180 feet, with its upper decks approximately 60 feet below the surface. It was towed from Mobile on November 9 and reached the deployment site partially flooded.

Lawsuit fails to stop SS United States sinking as divers await access

The project faced a legal challenge from the SS United States Preservation Foundation, which filed a lawsuit on November 3 seeking to stop the sinking. The foundation argued that environmental risks & historic preservation requirements had not been adequately addressed, as per PNJ.

US District Judge M. Casey Rodgers denied the request for an emergency restraining order and preliminary injunction on November 6.

The sinking was originally planned for November 12 but was moved forward by a day because of forecasts of heavy winds and unsafe weather. The scheduled sendoff ceremony was canceled.