What a terrific article, certainly the only one I've seen to look at the science of this - and to point out that the ship didn't just hit sand: that section of the canal is lined - it went through "protective" boulders to reach that sand.
Favourite quote:
Sailors talk about hydrodynamics the way CEOs talk about macroeconomics: they either treat it with mystical reverence, or they claim to understand it and are wrong. Unlike with macroeconomics, though, if you know what you’re doing you can test the propositions of hydrodynamics on actual, physical models in a lab. As in: you build little boats and then you drag them through the water, in a towing tank. Hydrodynamics is what a five-year old would do, if a five-year old had a PhD.