The discovery of the wreckage of a U.S. Navy patrol craft that lost a heroic but lopsided duel with a U-boat offers a chance to further understand the World War II fighting that raged just off America's shores.
In mariners' terms, it's an area that's long been known as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic." In World War II terms, the waters off the Outer Banks of North Carolina gained the additional nickname of "Torpedo Junction," as predatory U-boats sunk or damaged hundreds of ships there during the dark early days following American's entry in the global conflict. Now, another piece of Torpedo Junction's archaeological puzzle has fallen into place: The wreck of a U.S. Navy vessel destroyed in a firefight with a U-boat in 1942 has been discovered off Cape Hatteras.
