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Divers have uncovered a preserved 'ghost ship' in 2,000 feet of water nearly 20 miles off the coast of Oahu in Hawaii.

Sitting upright, its solitary mast still standing and the ship's wheel still in place, the hulk of the former cable ship Dickenson, later the USS Kailua, was found on the seabed. 

Experts were stunned to find the ship was surprisingly intact for a vessel that was sunk with a torpedo.

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Sitting upright, its solitary mast still standing and the ship's wheel still in place, the hulk of the former cable ship Dickenson, later the USS Kailua, was found on the seabed in 2,000 feet of water nearly 20 miles off the coast of Oahu in Hawaii.

Researchers from the University of Hawai'i (UH) and NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries today revealed the ship was found by a robotic submersible. 

'It is always a thrill when you are closing in on a large sonar target with the Pisces submersible and you don't know what big piece of history is going to come looming out of the dark,' said Terry Kerby, the submersible pilot.

'One of our first views of the USS Kailua was the classic helms wheel on the fantail. 

'The ship was surprisingly intact for a vessel that was sunk with a torpedo. 

'The upper deck structures from the bow to the stern were well-preserved and showed no sign of torpedo damage.'

'From her interisland service to her role in Pacific communications and then World War II, Dickenson today is like a museum exhibit resting in the darkness, reminding us of these specific elements of Pacific history,' said Van Tilburg. 

'Seeing the ship come into view, we were all amazed at its level of preservation - and by the fact that everything was more or less in place.

FROMCABLE SHIP TO TORPEDO TARGET: THE DICKINSON

Launched in Chester, Pennsylvania in early 1923 for the Commercial Pacific Cable Company, Dickenson was a vital part of a global network of submarine cable that carried telecommunications around the world. 

When the cable reached Hawai'i for the first time in 1901, it was a major step in establishing not only a key link in the network, but also in connecting the islands to the rest of the world with near-instant communication. 

Dickenson arrived in Hawai'i and started work in July of that year. Repairing cable and carrying supplies, Dickenson served the remote stations at Midway and Fanning Island from 1923 until 1941. 

The famous battle of Midway, off the atoll's shores in 1942 saw it take on a new role as a warship.

Dickenson, now chartered by the U.S. Navy, entered service as USS Kailua (IX-71) to service cable and submarine nets in the South Pacific until it returned to Pearl Harbor at the end of the war. 

No longer needed by the Navy or the Commercial Cable Company, the former USS Kailua was sunk as a target by submarine torpedo fire on February 7, 1946.

The exact location was not recorded, and the final resting place of the ship had remained a mystery.

'The identification of the wreck was easy, not only because of its unique form, but also because the Navy's identification number of IX-71 was still painted on the bow,' said Delgado, director of the Maritime Heritage Program.

Detailed analysis of sonar surveys of the sea floor off Oahu by Steve Price and Terry Kerby of HURL has found a number of significant, previously uncharted wrecks that remained unidentified until encountered by HURL's Pisces submersibles. 

These have included the Japanese midget submarine sunk in the opening hour of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the massive aircraft carrier submarines I-400 and I-401.

The ships copntrol system was found nearby. The USS Kailua wreck is now considered an historic site.

The USS Kailua wreck is considered an historic site. 

'We plan to nominate the wreck to the National Register of Historic Places,' noted Delgado.

'This unique American ship, vital in its role in keeping global telecommunications open in the first part of the 20th century, is also linked to historically significant Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, now part of Papahanaumokukea Marine National Monument in the National Marine Sanctuary System. 

Wrecks such as this remind us of special places in the ocean, like the monument, that connect all of us to them as refuges, sanctuaries and museums beneath the sea.'

There are no plans for a return to the site or any recovery; the wreck owned by the U.S. Government and is protected as Federal Property.