Microsoft co-founder says his exploration vessel M/Y Octopus found the battleship off the coast of the Philippines 
 
 Sunk without trace in what some historians consider the greatest naval battle ever fought, the mightiest battleship ever built has been found off the Philippines by one of the world’s wealthiest men. 
 
 Paul Allen, the multibillionaire Microsoft co-founder, on Tuesday posted photographs of the wreck of the Musashi, a second world war Japanese battleship that, with its sister-ship the Yamato, was the largest and most heavily-armed warship ever launched. 
 
 “WW2 Battleship Musashi sank 1944 is FOUND,” Allen announced on Twitter, beneath a ghostly underwater photograph of the mammoth vessel’s rusting, coral-encrusted bow clearly bearing the chrysanthemum crest of the Japanese imperial family. 
 
 Other pictures taken on the floor of the Sibuyan Sea by a team from the Octopus, Allen’s luxury yacht and undersea exploration vessel, showed one of the warship’s enormous anchors and a heavily encrusted valve captioned: “RIP crew of Musashi, approximately 1,023 lost.” 
 
 Image taken by Paul Allen showing what Allen’s team believes is a valve wheel on the ship. Photograph: AP 
 
 Allen, who has devoted a small part of his estimated $17.5bn fortune to deep-sea and space exploration, said on his website that the discovery of the wreck, at a depth of more than half a mile, marked “an important milestone in the annals of World War II naval history”. 
 
 Designed to take on multiple enemy ships simultaneously, the Musashi was the second of the imperial Japanese navy’s colossal Yamato-class heavy battleships. Launched in November 1940, it measured 263m (863 feet) overall, weighed 73,000 tonnes fully laden, carried a crew of 2,500, and could travel at speeds of up to 27 knots (50 kph). 
 
 But what most alarmed the Allies was the warship’s terrifying armament, which included the largest-calibre guns ever fitted to a warship: nine 46cm (18.1in) cannon mounted in three triple turrets, each capable of firing up to two 1,460kg (3,220lb) armour-piercing shells a minute over a maximum range of 26 miles. 
 
 She was an awe-inpiring sight. “I had never,” the World War II Database records gunner Russ Dustan of the American aircraft carrier USS Franklin as saying, “seen anything as big in my entire life … It was huge.” 
 
 But mighty as she was, the Musashi was not invulnerable – especially to aerial attack. On October 18 1944, Japanese vice admiral Takeo Kurita sailed with a 67-strong fleet, including both the Musashi and Yamato, into the Sibuyan Sea, west of the Philippine island of Leyte, aiming to throw back an American landing and attack vulnerable US transport ships on the other side of the island. 
 
 At 8.10am on October 24 a spotter aircraft from the US carrier Intrepid spied the Japanese fleet, and by 10.27am, according to Japanese naval records, battle was formally engaged, with the Musashi’s massive guns in action for the first time. 
 
 But with few Japanese aircraft to fend off the airborne attacks, the enormous vessel eventually became a sitting duck, reduced to firing its mammoth guns into the water to send up huge spouts of water aimed at knocking the attacking aircraft out of the air. 
 
 “Running into one of these geysers was like running into a mountain,” one US pilot, Jack Lawton, was recorded as saying after the battle. “I felt the muzzle blast each time they fired. I could swear the wings were ready to fold every time these huge shockwaves hit us.” 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Japanese battleship Musashi in October 1944. Photograph: Jiji Press/AFP/Getty Images 
 
 The last American attack was over by 3.30pm, according to the US Naval Historical Centre, leaving the Musashi listing heavily from some 37 direct torpedo and bomb hits (the figure is disputed). At 7.15pm, Captain Toshihira Inoguchi retired to his cabin, intending to go down with his ship. The order to abandon ship came 15 minutes later and at 7.36pm the Musashi capsized and sank. Of the crew of 2,399, only 1,376 survived. 
 
 Pitting combined American and Australian forces against the Japanese navy, the Battle of Leyte Gulf is widely considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and is thought by some naval historians to be the largest in history. 
 
 Despite numerous witness accounts of the sinking, the exact location of the Musashi’s wreck was never clearly established. Allen, who co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates in 1975 and is ranked by Forbes magazine as the 51st richest person in the world, said he began searching for the battleship more than eight years ago. 
 
 In a statement, the billionaire said his team conducted a bathymetric survey of the ocean floor to eliminate large areas from the search, then conducted the final phase of the search using a autonomous underwater robot, or AUV, to detect the wreckage on Monday. An ROV, or remote operated vehicle, fitted with a high-definition camera and operated from the Octopus, later successfully filmed the battleship. 
 
 Allen said he had long been fascinated by second world war history and was “honoured to play a part in finding this key vessel in naval history and honouring the memory of the incredible bravery of the men who served aboard her”. 
 
 The entrepreneur is also working on a project to put “cost-effective” cargo and manned missions into space, and launched SpaceShipOne, the first privately built craft to enter suborbital space, in 2004. ||||| (CNN) Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen says he has found the wreck of a long-lost World War II Japanese battleship near the Philippines. 
 
 The philanthropist posted images on Twitter that appeared to show the Musashi, once one of the two largest warships in the world. The discovery was made aboard his superyacht, the MY Octopus, as part of an expedition that Allen launched. 
 
 The search has taken Allen and his team of researchers more than eight years. 
 
 The images and video were taken by an unmanned submersible deployed from the vessel. 
 
 "Since my youth, I have been fascinated with World War II history, inspired by my father's service in the U.S. Army," Allen said in a statement. 
 
 "The Musashi is truly an engineering marvel and, as an engineer at heart, I have a deep appreciation for the technology and effort that went into its construction. I am honored to play a part in finding this key vessel in naval history and honoring the memory of the incredible bravery of the men who served aboard her." 
 
 He used his Twitter account to publicize the find. In one tweet, he said one image showed the bow of the ship, which features a distinctive chrysanthemum -- the flower is the emblem of Japan's royal family -- and a huge anchor. 
 
 WW2 Battleship Musashi sank 1944 is FOUND > 1K M deep by MY Octopus Sibuyan sea, bow Chrysanthemum, huge anchor. pic.twitter.com/b9ZMA0icI8 — Paul Allen (@PaulGAllen) March 2, 2015 
 
 The other underwater photograph shows one of the Musashi's valves on which the Japanese characters for "main valve handle" and "open" are legible. 
 
 He said the writing on the valve was proof that the ship was of Japanese origin. 
 
 RIP crew of Musashi, appx 1023 lost. The pic of the valve 1st confirmation of Japanese origin (clues 2 use apprec). pic.twitter.com/BcJgkhWskb — Paul Allen (@PaulGAllen) March 2, 2015 
 
 The director of Japan's Kure Maritime Museum told CNN after viewing the information posted by Allen that it appeared that the vessel was the Musashi, although further pictures were needed to know for sure. 
 
 Photos: Sinking of the Musashi Photos: Sinking of the Musashi The Japanese battleship Musashi under intense attack by the U.S. Navy's Task Force 38 aircraft in the Sibuyan Sea on October 24, 1944. A destroyer is also receiving attacks beyond the battleship. Hide Caption 1 of 6 Photos: Sinking of the Musashi A Japanese battleship and other warships maneuver while under attack by U.S. carrier planes in the Sibuyan Sea. Two Japanese battleships, the Musashi and its sister ship, the Yamato, were involved in the battle. Hide Caption 2 of 6 Photos: Sinking of the Musashi Musashi leaves Brunei, Borneo, in 1944. Hide Caption 3 of 6 Photos: Sinking of the Musashi The Japanese Center Force leaves Brunei Bay on October 22, 1944, en route to the Philippines. Hide Caption 4 of 6 Photos: Sinking of the Musashi Japanese battleships and a cruiser are seen just before the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Hide Caption 5 of 6 Photos: Sinking of the Musashi Emperor Hirohito of Japan (front row, center) is photographed with officers of the Imperial Navy on board the battleship Musashi off Yokosuka Naval Base on June 24, 1943. Hide Caption 6 of 6 
 
 The Musashi was one of two Yamato-class battleships constructed by the Imperial Japanese Navy. 
 
 Launched in 1940, it was, at the time, the largest class of warship ever constructed, displacing more than 69,000 tons. 
 
 The Musashi sank on October 24, 1944, during the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, part of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, in the central Philippines. According to U.S. Navy documents, torpedo planes from U.S. aircraft carriers scored at least 10 hits on the battleship over the course of four hours. Navy dive bombers also hit the ship 16 times, but it was the torpedo hits that doomed the Musashi. 
 
 "She went down by the bow, capsizing when the forward flying (U.S. forecastle) deck was submerged," said the Navy report, based on survivor accounts. 
 
 Two of those survivors, the executive officer and the chief engineer, told how they escaped the sinking. 
 
 "The executive officer swam off from one of the upper levels in the tower. He saw the propellers as Musashi disappeared," the Navy report said. "The chief engineer climbed over the side amidships as Musashi lurched to port. He walked and scrambled around the girth against the roll, climbing over the bilge keel. Finally, he was thrown off into the water and swam away to port. There were no explosions." 
 
 More than 1,000 of the Musashi's crew were killed during the battle and sinking. The 1,300-plus survivors were taken aboard by other Japanese warships, according to the U.S. Navy report. 
 
 1 kilometer deep 
 
 This image, released by Paul Allen's company, Vulcan, appears to show the massive ship's starboard anchor. 
 
 Allen said that his superyacht, the MY Octopus, had found the wreck at a depth of around 1 kilometer (3,281 feet). 
 
 A statement released by Vulcan, Allen's company, said that the team combined historical data with advanced technology to narrow the search area, and that Allen had "commissioned a hypsometric bathymetric survey of the ocean floor to determine the terrain" before searching the area with a Bluefin autonomous underwater vehicle. 
 
 Kazushige Todaka, the maritime museum director, said that, given the location and the depth at which the wreck was found, he was "90% sure" that the ship was the Musashi. 
 
 "I was really surprised because the location of the sunken ship has never been identified since it went down. I have heard countless stories in the past that the ship was discovered, but they all turned out not to be true." 
 
 Todaka said Allen's team had been in contact with the museum about the ship's potential location and its expedition. 
 
 'Wonderful discovery' 
 
 This shot, released by Allen's company, Vulcan, shows the Japanese royal family's chrysanthemum emblem on the bow. 
 
 "It's a wonderful discovery, if it's true, as we have long been looking for the battleship," he said. 
 
 "It's fateful that the discovery was made on the 70th anniversary of (the end of) World War II. The memory of the war has been fading away after 70 years, and the survivors of the war are disappearing. It is very meaningful discovery and a good chance for us to remind ourselves about the war and its tragedy." 
 
 He added that images of the entire body of the ship will be needed to be 100% sure that the discovery is indeed the Musashi. 
 
 The Vulcan statement added that the team is "mindful of the responsibility related to the wreckage of the Musashi as a war grave and intend to work with the Japanese government to ensure the site is treated respectfully and in accordance with Japanese traditions." 
 
 Diverse interests 
 
 Since leaving Microsoft, the company he co-founded in 1975, billionaire Allen has immersed himself in a variety of commercial and charitable pursuits. 
 
 He is the owner of several U.S. sports teams -- including the Seattle Seahawks -- and backed SpaceShipOne, the prototype commercial spaceplane that won the 2004 Ansari X Prize.
– The wreckage of Japan's biggest World War II warship has been discovered more than a half-mile underwater in the Sibuyan Sea, and credit for the find goes to a Microsoft co-founder, AFP reports. Paul Allen tweeted photos on Monday of the Musashi, sunk by US warplanes in 1944. Allen says he found the remains in the Philippines while exploring on his yacht, the M/Y Octopus, and describes it as the culmination of an eight-year search that relied on historical documents from four countries, a "hypsometric bathymetric survey" of the ocean floor, and his yacht's robust technology. After surveying the area, Allen and his team of researchers deployed an autonomous underwater vehicle to pinpoint the ship's location, according to a press release via CNBC that calls the Musashi "one of the two largest and most technologically advanced battleships in naval history." "The Musashi is truly an engineering marvel, and as an engineer at heart, I have a deep appreciation for the technology and effort that went into its construction," Allen says. Underwater photos show a giant chrysanthemum on the ship's bow, symbolizing Japan's royal family; an image of one of the ship's valves reveals it bears Japanese writing. A Japanese museum director says he's "90% sure" that it is indeed the Musashi, CNN reports. More than 1,000 people died in the ship's sinking. "It's fateful that the discovery was made on the 70th anniversary of [the end of] World War II," Kazushige Todaka adds. "It is [a] very meaningful discovery and a good chance for us to remind ourselves about the war and its tragedy." (A World War II "ghost ship" was recently found off Hawaii.)