Who knew that one of the discoverers of the wreckage of the legendary Titanic would be a guy who got his start in Hobart?

Not even Tom Dettweiler, a member of that famous crew and now one of the hosts of the Discovery Channel's weekly television series, "Treasure Quest," would have bet on that one. But as a youngster, he had high hopes.

Dettweiler grew up fascinated by the Great Lakes. It might as well have been an ocean that the youngster explored when he visited Lake Michigan beaches.

Together, the five lakes -- Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario -- contain about 22 percent of the planet's total available fresh water. Spread over 94,250 miles, the lakes are indeed majestic. And by all rights (to children, at least), any lake one can't see the end of is by informal definition "an ocean."

Then there were the Sunday afternoons Dettweiler spent with his elbows propped up on pillows in front of the TV, devouring every second of Jacques Cousteau's marvelous underwater adventures.

"I lived for that show," said Dettweiler from his Maryland home (Dettweiler's father still lives in Hobart).

"It was one of the most inspiring things in my childhood. Cousteau put 120 percent into everything he did -- he was such a hard worker. He did amazing things with so few resources."

In 1966, Cousteau's first hour-long television special, "The World of Jacques-Yves Cousteau," was broadcast to critical acclaim. The program's high ratings were pivotal in landing Cousteau a major contract with ABC and in 1968 resulted in the series "The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau." The program ran for eight seasons and starred Cousteau, his sons, Philippe and Jean-Michel, and sea creatures from every corner of the globe.

Dettweiler is proud his work with Discovery Channel's "Treasure Quest" is garnering the kind of praise once reserved for Cousteau. The program airs Thursday nights at 9.

"People have said it's like the old Cousteau shows -- which is high praise indeed," Dettweiler said.

Hobart High School Class of 1971 graduate Dettweiler did see his dreams come true. He even managed to work for two years with the renowned Cousteau himself -- as a science officer and electronics engineer aboard Cousteau's Calypso.

Now a deep-ocean explorer with his own list of credits and accomplishments, Dettweiler lives the life of a new-age ocean explorer, with a host of modern technologies at his disposal. As senior project for Odyssey Marine Exploration, the company at the helm of all the discoveries, Dettweiler is a leader in the Odyssey Explorer crew.

With more than 35 years of ocean-exploring experience, he specializes in developing and managing shipboard deep-ocean systems and ocean science programs. His extensive knowledge ranges from deep-diving submersibles, submarines and Remotely Operated Vehicles to towed vehicles, navigation and positioning, and shipboard sonar systems.

Prior to joining Odyssey, Dettweiler was involved in many of the greatest shipwreck discoveries in the deep ocean. He is credited with locating the Japanese Submarine I-52 and the Israeli Submarine Dakar. Dettweiler also was integrally involved with the search for famous pilot Amelia Earhart's plane, which disappeared in 1937. He spent five years as Robert Ballard's operations director when he headed the team that found the RMS Titanic in 1985 and later recovered a section of the ship in 1998.

Dettweiler holds a bachelor of science in electrical engineering and master of science degrees in both marine science and ocean engineering.

Though the Titanic is what many people ask Dettweiler about, he says he personally felt rewarded by the Dakar's retrieval. The submarine sank with 69 crewmen aboard in 1968 near Cyprus, and the Israeli government searched to no avail for decades. Dettweiler and his crew located the Dakar in 1999.

"It meant a lot to many, many families," Dettweiler recalled. "For me, it was satisfying to help them get some closure. Not every deep-ocean project is about gold coins."

Following his involvement in the discovery and recovery of the submarine Dakar, Dettweiler received a medal of honor from the government of Israel. The cause of the sinking, though still subject to debate, is currently attributed to structural problems with the hull.

Dettweiler also has worked with several governments and agencies on professionally challenging deep-ocean recovery projects that are classified and about which, he said, he is "asked to keep mum."

On the horizon

Next up for Dettweiler is additional work on the Black Swan project. Treasure hunting and retrieval work will continue at the site of a sunken ship believed to have gone down in the 1600s. This Mediterranean-area site produced 17 tons of silver, hundreds of gold coins, worked gold and numerous artifacts -- as well as much attention from the press.

Dettweiler and the Odyssey crew will continue their archeological work on the shipwreck this summer. The deep-sea loot could have a value as high as $500 million, which would make it the richest find of sunken treasure in history.

Odyssey Marine Exploration has completed an extensive pre-disturbance archaeological survey of the shipwreck site, including recording more than 9,500 digital still images that were used to create a photo-mosaic. During the preliminary excavation, the recovery of artifacts was supervised by archaeologists and followed rigorous archaeological protocols using advanced robotic technology.

One would think Dettweiler goes home with gold doubloons and ancient silver pieces stuffed in his pockets.

"I get a salary," Dettweiler said. "It's a good living, but it costs millions for the expeditions, the equipment, the crew and staff. We use some of the most advanced technology available and the need for investment in new equipment is a continual expense."

Dettweiler isn't motivated by money, anyway. There's still a youthful explorer trapped inside this adventurer. He is as enthralled today by the mysteries of the ocean as he was as a kid gaping at Cousteau shows on TV.

"This is all I ever wanted to do," Dettweiler said. "I have to be one of the happiest men alive."

FYI: "Treasure Quest," 9 p.m., The Discovery Channel