A 15–ton section of the Titanic hull, the largest piece of the sunken ship ever recovered from the o

A 15–ton section of the Titanic hull, the largest piece of the sunken ship ever recovered from the ocean floor, was installed today at the California Science Center at Exposition Park. The Big Piece, as it's known, is from the ships starboard side and contains huge steel plates, rivets and portholes from first–class cabins. Workers lifted the piece from ground level through a window space on the third floor of the science center, where it will be put on display on February 9. The piece was lifted off the ocean floor by RMS Titanic Inc. during a 1998 expedition, after one the year before ended in failure when a crew lifted the piece out of the water and a storm sent it tumbling back down. To avoid deterioration, the piece was given an electrolytic bath to stop corrosion and remove salts. (Photo by Gary Friedman/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)