Officials have released the first close-up images of the wreck of Quest, the ship on which Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton died. The images show the vessel lying roughly 1,280 feet deep in the Labrador Sea, off Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada, and offer researchers and history enthusiasts a rare, detailed look at a site long associated with the final chapter of the polar explorer's career.

Despite decades on the seabed, the wreck remains recognisable and in what researchers describe as moderate condition. The images were captured at the site and made public in July, with expedition co-chief scientist Dwight Coleman among those involved in the survey work documenting the ship's current state.