In 2006, a small anomaly on a fishfinder-no more than a bump on the seabed-led divers to one of Australia's most remarkable wartime discoveries: the wreck of the Japanese midget submarine M24, lost during the 1942 attack on Sydney Harbour. For more than six decades, its fate had remained unknown.
Ghost Below tells the full story of that discovery and the long investigation that followed. Drawing on firsthand accounts, diver exploration, and detailed archaeological analysis, Steven Carruthers reconstructs how M24 was found, identified, and brought into Australia's historical record. From early survey work to complex underwater documentation, the book reveals the challenges of locating and interpreting a wartime wreck in deep water off Sydney's northern beaches.
Interwoven with this modern discovery is the wartime story itself. The midget submarine attack on Sydney Harbour remains one of the most audacious operations of the Pacific War, and Carruthers revisits the events of that night to provide context to M24's final mission. The book also expands beyond the harbour, exploring the broader Japanese submarine campaign along Australia's east coast-a largely overlooked theatre that brought the realities of global conflict to Australian shores.
At its core, Ghost Below is both an historical investigation and a story of maritime discovery. It follows the divers, researchers, and heritage specialists who pieced together the evidence, balancing technical analysis with a deep respect for the men who served and were lost. The result is a compelling account that bridges past and present, connecting wartime events with their rediscovery beneath the sea.
Combining meticulous research with first-hand insight, Ghost Below offers a unique perspective on one of Australia's enduring naval mysteries-revealing not just what happened in 1942, but how that story was finally uncovered more than half a century later.
