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Germany's academic influence isn't to be underestimated. Housing one of the world's oldest universities and counting countless Nobel Laureates as alumni, Germany has brains as well as style.

Founded in 1914, Goethe University is one of Germany's largest academic institutions, with around 41,000 students. The university celebrated its 100th anniversary on October 18, 2014.

Leipzig university is one of the oldest universities in the world, and is the second oldest in Germany, founded in 1409. Famous alumni include Goethe and Nietzsche.

The University of Leipzig is also famous for its early twentieth century architecture and modern buildings. A large lecture theater on the main campus is pictured.

With 25 Nobel prize winners amongst its alumni, Humboldt University has established itself as one of the most prestigious universities in Europe.

Among the ten largest universities in Germany, Ruhr University became the first new public university in Germany since World War II.

Born out of the Cold War in West Berlin, the Free University of Berlin is one of the most prominent institutions in Germany. Its research specialties include social sciences and humanities.

Established in 1991, this Bradenburg University of Technology is one of the youngest academic institutions in Germany. A visitor is pictured in the new information, communication and media center on campus, designed by Swiss architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron.

• Germany now offers 100% free university education


• The measure includes international students


• Germany is the third most popular destination for overseas students


• But the university system is very different to the one in the U.S.

Editor's note: To mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, CNN's special program Fall of the Wall will look at how Germany's economy has developed since the momentous event.

(CNN) -- If you want a world-class education without the hefty price tag it usually carries, it's time you pack your bags and head to Germany.

The country's federal state of Lower Saxony became the last region to scrap tuition fees in mid-October, which means that studying in Germany is now completely free even for international students.

So wherever you come from, doors of elite institutions like the University of Heidelberg and Technical University of Munich, both among the world's top 100 universities, are flung wide open if you're a gifted student.

We don't want higher education which depends on the wealth of the parents.

Gabriele Heinen-Kljajic

"We don't want higher education which depends on the wealth of the parents," Gabriele Heinen-Kljajic, minister for science and culture of Lower Saxony told German Pulse.

Her Hamburg counterpart Dorothee Stapelfeldt, whose region abolished fees in 2012, called tuition fees socially unjust: "They particularly discourage young people who do not have a traditional academic family background from taking up studies. It is a core task of politics to ensure that young women and men can study with a high quality standard free of charge in Germany," she told Britain's The Times newspaper.

Low cost/high rank

Germany has had a long tradition of free education, introducing fees only in 2006 when the constitutional court ruled that moderate tuition fees were not at odds with the country's pledge for education for all. However, even at around $1,300 per year, significantly lower than $14,500 and $30,000 paid by UK and U.S. students respectively, the fees caused widespread backlash, with federal states dropping them one by one.

The picturesque town of Heildelberg is home to a prestigious university which ranks at number 49 in this year's QS World University Rankings.

Harvey Meston/Archive Photos/Getty Images

The funding gap was mainly bridged by the government, with the average worker in Germany facing a tax burden on labor income of 49.3% in 2013, the second highest rate out of 34 OECD member countries.

The country is already a major destination for international students, ranking third in the world after the U.S. and Great Britain, according to data from the OECD. Overseas students flock to the Germany's illustrious universities, attracted by the relatively low cost of living and a vibrant cultural scene and nightlife.

Independent thinking

In Germany, you have to be more independent.

Phoebe Parke

But before you pack up and go, be aware that studying in Germany can be a very different to campus-based life common in the U.S. and Britain. Lectures often pack up to 200 people, and there is a greater onus on the student to keep track of all the reading and deadlines.

"I feel like English universities are a bit more like schools, they really look after you, print out your timetable for you, and if you miss a seminar they ring you up and ask is everything ok. In Germany, you have to be more independent," says former CNN intern Phoebe Parke who spent a year studying at Berlin's Humboldt University during the 2011/2012 academic year.

"My campus was spread all over Berlin, so I would take the underground between classes. That was very difficult if you didn't know the city because there wasn't really anyone to help you, and the buildings were sometimes out of the way," adds Parke, who completed her studies at Britain's Warwick University.

Navigating your way

Social life for international students can also be harder to form, as many German students study in their home town and often live with their parents, or share an apartment with friends.

But if you negotiate those challenges successfully, Parke says that the German system offers freedom to expand your interests: "There is a lot less pressure on students because they are not paying for it, so it's more about the pursuit of learning than just passing an exam and forgetting everything. But you are the one propelling your education forward, not the lecturer."

So for the independent and self-starting student who wants a great education for no price at at all, Germany might just be the answer.

Read more: Germany: 25 years later and no looking back

Read more: A look inside Europe's economic powerhouse

Read more: Sister Doris: Europe's last beer-making nun

Did ISIS intercept U.S. airdrops?

• A doctor in Kobani expresses gratitude for airdropped medical supplies


• A U.S. official says that of 28 bundles dropped, one went outside a target zone


• A video shows what appears to be an ISIS fighter next to a bundle


• CNN cannot independently confirm whether that bundle is from a U.S. airdrop

Turkish-Syrian border (CNN) -- In the besieged Syrian city of Kobani, precious medicine rains from the sky.

Antibiotics, anesthetics, sanitary supplies and bandages -- all desperately needed to treat local fighters and civilians wounded during the siege of this crucial town near the Turkish border.

U.S. airplanes are dropping medical supplies and weapons into this Kurdish city as defenders try to beat back the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.

Not long ago, Kobani's fall to ISIS seemed certain. But foreign airstrikes and airdropped supplies could help turn the tide.

"We thank the people who brought these medical supplies," said Dr. Walat Omar, who has been braving enemy artillery for weeks to treat the wounded at a makeshift clinic.

U.S. airdrop lands in ISIS hands?

Why hasn't Turkey gone after ISIS?

In exclusive video obtained by CNN from inside Kobani, Omar showed boxes of medicine in his clinic received from the airdrops.

Even though local defenders control some 70% of the city, Kobani is cut off, and ISIS forces have been shelling it with mortars from the east and south, local government official Anwar Muslim said this week.

More than 100,000 refugees have fled to Turkey amid weeks of intense fighting by Kurdish forces for full control of Kobani, a border town that's one of the last in the region to resist falling to ISIS.

Opinion: ISIS reveals its strategy

In the wrong hands?

But some of the supplies may have landed in the hands of ISIS.

One of the 28 bundles dropped in and around Kobani on Monday drifted away from its target zone, a U.S. official said. The U.S. military said it went back and blasted it.

But a video posted on social media shows what appears to be an ISIS fighter next to a parachute bundle. He goes on to show what appears to be the contents of the bundle, including crates of hand grenades and mortar rounds.

CNN cannot independently confirm whether the items in the video are from a U.S. airdrop.

Officials: Denver girls played hooky from school, tried to join ISIS

Fighting in Kobani continued Wednesday, with six Kurdish defenders killed and the bodies of 10 ISIS fighters recovered, a Kurdish fighter there said.

Mortars fired from the city's east -- presumably by ISIS -- hit the city center, the fighter said.

Battles in Iraq continue

As Kurdish fighters keep battling ISIS in Syria, the militant group continues its offensive in Iraq.

The Iraqi military and tribal forces tried to repel an attack on Amriyat al Falluja on Wednesday, said Anbar province Deputy Gov. Faleh al-Essawi.

Amriyat al Falluja is about 30 kilometers (19 miles) south of Falluja.

At least six suicide bombings and more than 70 mortar attacks targeting government forces were counted Wednesday, al-Essawi said. He said there are casualties on both sides, but the numbers were not immediately known.

Ivan Watson reported from the Turkish-Syrian border; Holly Yan reported and wrote from Atlanta. CNN's Barbara Starr, Kareem Khadder and Brian Walker and journalist Odai Sadik contributed to this report.

Blackwater guards guilty in Iraq killings

• Ex-guard guilty of 1st-degree murder, 3 others convicted on multiple manslaughter counts


• One defendant's attorney promises to appeal: "We're going to fight vigorously for him"


• 14 people, including 9- and 11-year-old, killed when guards opened fire in 2007 incident


• "The street turned into the street of the dead," witness testified during lengthy federal trial

(CNN) -- After marathon deliberations, a federal jury found four ex-Blackwater Worldwide contractors guilty Wednesday in a deadly 2007 mass shooting in Baghdad's Nusoor Square.

Nicholas Slatten, 30, of Sparta, Tennessee, the team's sniper, was found guilty of first-degree murder while armed in the slaying of the driver of a white Kia sedan in the Baghdad traffic circle. Prosecutors said Slatten kicked off the incident when he opened fire.

The other verdicts:

-- Paul Slough, 35, of Keller, Texas, was found guilty of 13 counts of voluntary manslaughter, 17 counts of attempted manslaughter and one firearms offense;

-- Evan Liberty, 32, of Rochester, New Hampshire, was found guilty of eight counts of voluntary manslaughter, 12 counts of attempted manslaughter and one firearms offense;

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-- Dustin Heard, 33, of Maryville, Tennessee, was found guilty of six counts of voluntary manslaughter, 11 counts of attempted manslaughter and one firearms offense.

"This verdict is a resounding affirmation of the commitment of the American people to the rule of law, even in times of war," Ronald Machen, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said in a statement.

"Seven years ago, these Blackwater contractors unleashed powerful sniper fire, machine guns and grenade launchers on innocent men, women and children. Today, they were held accountable for that outrageous attack and its devastating consequences for so many Iraqi families."

28 days of deliberation

The jury began deliberating September 2 after a trial that lasted more than two months. Seventy-one witnesses testified, including 30 from Iraq, the largest group of foreign witnesses to travel to the United States for a criminal trial, Machen's statement said.

Wednesday marked jurors' 28th day of deliberations, but one defense attorney said the case isn't over.

"I expect we're going to appeal, and we're going to fight vigorously for him," Liberty's attorney, Bill Coffield, said after the verdicts were handed down.

Slatten's murder charge carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison, and each voluntary manslaughter count carries a maximum sentence of 15 years, according to Machen's office. The attempted manslaughter counts carry seven-year maximum sentences and the weapons offenses command mandatory 30-year sentences.

Senior Judge Royce Lamberth ordered the men be detained pending sentencing. No date has been set.

Another contractor, Jeremy Ridgeway, pleaded guilty in 2008 to voluntary manslaughter and attempt to commit manslaughter and testified for the government. He is awaiting sentencing, the statement said.

'Sudden quarrel and heat of passion'

Prosecutors say 14 Iraqi civilians were killed that day at Nusoor Square, including 9- and 11-year-old boys. Eighteen more people were injured.

The Justice Department alleged Slough, Liberty and Heard "unlawfully and intentionally, upon a sudden quarrel and heat of passion, did commit voluntary manslaughter" in the ensuing chaos when they opened fire.

The September 16, 2007, incident began when 19 Blackwater contractors were assigned to a convoy. After learning a car bomb had detonated in Baghdad, near where a U.S. official was being escorted, the team -- known as Raven 23 -- drove to a secured checkpoint.

Anything that moved in Nusoor Square was shot. Women, children, young people, they shot everyone.

Witness Hasan Jaber

"Once there, in disregard of an order from Blackwater's command, the team's shift leader directed Raven 23 to leave the Green Zone and establish a blockade in Nusoor Square, a busy traffic circle that was immediately adjacent to the Green Zone," the prosecutor's statement said.

Seven members of the team opened fire in the traffic circle, killing and injuring unarmed Iraqis, and Slough kept firing as the team exited the circle, killing and wounding even more Iraqis.

Among those killed were a doctor, a used car salesman, a truck driver, a businessman, an Iraqi soldier, a gardener, a taxi driver and an aspiring doctor taking his mother to an appointment, according to prosecutors.

Blackwater said its convoy came under attack, and defense attorneys said in court that witnesses fabricated their stories. Witnesses countered that the contractors fired first and without provocation.

A federal judge in 2008 dismissed the original case, finding the Justice Department withheld key evidence and violated the contractors' rights. But a federal appeals court later reversed that decision, leading the government to seek a fresh indictment and trial.

'Street of the dead'

Some of the testimony was harrowing as witnesses recalled going about their days unsuspectingly when the bullets began to fly.

"I remember people strewn on the street -- children, elderly men. This is what I saw with my own eyes. The street turned into the street of the dead," one witness said.

Attorney Hasan Jaber was driving to work when he got trapped in traffic at the square. That's when the shooting started. Like many others, he tried to flee, but he was shot three times.

"It was horror," he said. "People running out of their cars were being shot at. ... Anything that moved in Nusoor Square was shot. Women, children, young people, they shot everyone."

Blackwater had a $1 billion government contract to protect American diplomats at the time.

2007: Blackwater most often shoots first, congressional report says

In 2007, congressional hearings were held on possible misconduct by Blackwater, and then-owner Erik Prince was vilified by Congress.

"I believe we acted appropriately at all times," Prince testified before Congress.

"Blackwater seems to have fostered a culture of shoot first, sometimes kill, and ask questions later," Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, said at one hearing.

Prince sold the company in 2010 for $200 million.

CNN's Eric Marrapodi, Gregory Clary, Ed Payne and Jomana Karadsheh contributed to this report.

Partial solar eclipse Thursday

• NASA: Protect your eyes with special filters or indirect methods when viewing any eclipse


• Thursday's partial eclipse reaches its peak at 5:45 p.m. ET


• People in the Central Time zone will get the best view, NASA says


• If you're in Hawaii or the far northeast U.S., you'll miss out on this one

(CNN) -- The cosmos will cast an afternoon delight over the country on Thursday with a partial solar eclipse.

The moon will clip the sun, making it look like a fingernail as it sets in the west for most of the country and Canada.

The show will reach its height at 5:45 p.m. ET, NASA says, meaning the Eastern half of the country should get a view before the backdrop of golden twilight hues.

People living in the Central Time zone will have the best view, NASA says. New England and Hawaii will unfortunately miss out on this one.

The eclipse should last for over two hours.

Partial solar eclipse at sunset! The moon will pass in front of the sun Thursday: [video] http://t.co/GAhGBHSfoP http://ift.tt/1vZw0WR

— NASA (@NASA) October 20, 2014

Protect your eyes

While enjoying the view, protect your eyes, NASA says: "Don't stare. Even at maximum eclipse, a sliver of sun peeking out from behind the Moon can still cause pain and eye damage. Direct viewing should only be attempted with the aid of a safe solar filter."

There are some old tricks to viewing indirectly, like punching a hole in cardboard and projecting the light seeping through it onto a surface away from the sun.

Or let a tree do the work for you.

"Overlapping leaves create a myriad of natural little pinhole cameras, each one casting an image of the crescent-sun onto the ground beneath the canopy," NASA says.

If you miss this one, the next solar eclipse over North America will occur in about three years -- and it will be a more dramatic and rarer total eclipse.

Americans taking fewer vacations

Staff cutbacks are one reason U.S. workers aren't taking earned leave, says productivity trainer Joe Robinson. "More people doing the jobs of several makes it hard to escape."

According to Roger Dow, president of the United States Travel Association, 28% of workers surveyed declined to take earned days off in order to illustrate dedication. "They say, 'I don't want to be seen as a slacker,'" Dow says.

"About 40% of workers surveyed say they're afraid of all the work they're going to get to when they get back," says Dow of the USTA. "Work pileup scares the hell out of them."

"Another reason people aren't taking their time is they're caught up in 'busyness' and device addiction," says Robinson. Some companies encourage workers to avoid work emails and texts during off hours.

"Many people are so caught up on performance identity, worth based on what they get done, they feel guilty when they step back," says Robinson. "They get antsy when they're not doing something productive."

• Study finds U.S. workers forfeited $52.4 billion in time-off benefits in 2013


• In 2013, they took average of 16 vacation days compared to average of 20.3 days as recently as 2000


• With more people doing jobs of fewer people, many aren't taking vacations because they have too much work, says consultant

(CNN) -- Feeling buried by work, like you can't find time for a few days off, like your entire work-life balance is out of whack?

If you're an American worker, it just might be.

A new study has found that U.S. workers forfeited $52.4 billion in time-off benefits in 2013, and took less vacation time than at any point in the last four decades.

American workers turned their backs on a total of 169 million days of paid time off, in effect "providing free labor for their employers, at an average of $504 per employee," according to the study.

Titled "All Work and No Pay: The Impact of Forfeited Time Off," the study was conducted by Oxford Economics for the U.S. Travel Association's Travel Effect Initiative, which studies the impact of forgone vacation time.

"Americans are work martyrs," says the U.S. Travel Association (USTA). "Tied to the office, they leave more and more paid time off unused each year, forfeiting their earned benefits and, in essence, work for free."

According to the study, in 2013 U.S. employees took an average of 16 days of vacation compared to an average of 20.3 days as recently as 2000.

"The economic potential of returning to the pre-2000 vacation patterns is massive: annual vacation days taken by U.S. employees would jump 27% (or 768 million days), delivering a $284 billion impact across the entire U.S. economy," according to the USTA.

Based in Washington, D.C., the USTA is a national, nonprofit organization representing all components of the travel industry.

Does this describe you?

Productivity and stress management trainer and coach Joe Robinson tells CNN the issue is driven by a number of factors.

"One, workers are afraid to take their vacations in the layoff era," says Robinson. "It might mark them as less 'committed' than coworkers.

That's a good worker, chained to the desk. Well, maybe not.

"It's called defensive overworking. They work long hours and skip vacations to insulate themselves from cutbacks."

According to Roger Dow, president and CEO of the USTA, 28% of workers surveyed said they've declined to take earned days off in order to illustrate their dedication to the job.

"They say, 'I don't want to be seen as a slacker,'" Dow tells CNN. "'I want to be seen as someone who is really dedicated.'

"But it does them no good whatsoever. People who take more time off tend to get more raises and promotions."

"It's futile," agrees Robionson. "People who don't take their vacations get laid off just like everyone else."

Workforce cutbacks and "device addiction" are other factors.

"Lean staffing, with more and more people doing the jobs of several people, makes it hard to escape," says Robinson. "They're not taking vacations because they have too much work."

"About 40% [of workers surveyed] say they're afraid of all the work they're going to get to when they get back from vacation," says Dow. "Work pileup scares the hell out of them."

"Another big reason people aren't taking their time is that they are caught up in 'busyness' and device addiction," says Robinson. "Finally, many people are so caught up in the performance identity, worth based on what they get done, they feel guilty when they step back."

Reversing the trend?

A number of studies show that fewer vacation days can, perhaps counter-intuitively, lead to decreased productivity.

Researcher Mark Rosekind of Alertness Solutions has found that the respite effect of a vacation can increase performance by 80%. Reaction times of returning vacationers increased 40% in his study.

According to Dow, some U.S. companies, particularly on the West Coast, are beginning to overhaul their vacation policies.

"We're seeing multiple companies -- Expedia and Netflix and others -- that are doing away with their vacation policies entirely," says Dow. "They've just said, 'We no longer have a vacation policy, please discuss with your boss and take the time off you need.'"

In addition, companies that have instituted "use it or lose it" policies -- which don't allow annual vacation time to be rolled over to the next year or accrued for later use -- find that more employees take all of their earned leave.

Dow reports that some companies and organizations, including the USTA, have begun giving bonuses to employees who use their entire allotment of paid leave.

Perhaps these companies have become convinced by a growing body of research supporting the long-term bottom-line benefits of time away from work.

Author of the books "Work to Live" and "Don't Miss Your Life," Robinson is also the author of a current Entrepreneur magazine story titled "The Secret to Increased Productivity: Taking Time Off," in which he states "working without letup is a bad habit that can jeopardize business, health and the life you're supposedly working toward."

Have you forfeited earned time off? Are you satisfied with the time you ge t away from work? Share your work experiences in the comments?

A suitcase you can ride to the airport

Olaf bags feature a kick-down scooter board that people can ride. Helmets are optional.

There are three Olaf models -- a business model that's airline approved for use as cabin luggage, an urban model wearable as a backpack and one that can carry another bag.

Olafs feature a retractable handle, so they can be used as wheel-y bags.

They can also be used as hand trolleys to carry bulky items. Or flowers.

The urban backpack version features a wheel cover to protect clothing from dirt.

The Olaf scooter bags were created by "hardcore engineer" Bostjan Zagar after he was disappointed by the performance of a similar product.

Zagar admits the bags are "not for the shy ones," with some people in Europe wary of using them because they might stand out from the crowd.

• Slovenian frequent flier Bostjan Zagar's Olaf suitcase can also be ridden as a scooter


• Zagar has raised investment in his concept via the Kickstarter funding platform


• Olaf comes in three models: Business, Urban and a flexible version that can carry a variety of bags

(CNN) -- Ever wished you could clamber aboard your cumbersome luggage to zoom down a hill or coast through an airport?

Driven by the same desire, Slovenian frequent flier Bostjan Zagar has come up with the answer -- a foot-powered scooter-suitcase known as Olaf.

"The idea comes from having to catch the next connection flight in three minutes when the gate is on the other side of the world and you need to move faster than those moving walkways," Zagar tells CNN.

Disappointed with available luggage solutions to this problem, Zagar used his background as an automotive engineer and his time waiting for flights to sketch up an alternative.

Now, after three years of "testing, testing, testing," and a soon-to-finish fundraising campaign on Kickstarter, the Olaf is ready to hit the streets.

It's available in three models: an airline-approved carry-on suitcase with a built-in kick scooter; a backpack with kick scooter and a kick scooter that can carry another bag.

All three feature wheely suitcase-style collapsible handles and can double up as a hand trolleys.

MORE: The 50-cent accessory that could save your trip

'Hardcore engineering'

Zagar, who describes himself as a "hardcore engineering guy," says he grew up preferring scooters to skateboards because he liked being able to control the speed.

Needless to say, his suitcase scooters are all fitted with brakes.

Even with this sensible feature, Zagar says travelers in some parts of the world may be wary to step aboard.

"What we learned is the typical reaction in Europe was 'oh cool, I want to have one, but how will I look? People are staring at me.'

"This is the problem in Europe, people don't want to stand out from the crowd. For sure, it's not for the shy ones."

Olaf clearly has considerable appeal though.

With the final hours ticking down, Ljubljana-based Olaf's Kickstarter campaign has raised well in excess of its $27,000 target.

The scooter-suitcase, it seems, is already on a roll.

MORE: How to pack so you only need a carry-on

Nazi U-boat wreck found off N.C.

Crew members are seen on a German U-boat, the U-576, in this undated photo released by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. The submarine was sunk during World War II more than 72 years ago, and its remains were recently found off the coast of North Carolina, NOAA announced Tuesday, October 21.

German soldiers pose for a photo aboard the sub. All of the U-boat's 45 crew were lost when it was sunk July 14, 1942, during the Battle of the Atlantic.

Crew members are seen in the sub's conning tower.

The crew gathers around the conning tower.

Crew members gather around an 88mm gun.

The crew of U-576 poses for a formal photo aboard the sub.

• German U-576 attacked convoy off Cape Hatteras in 1942


• U-boat sank tanker Bluefields, but was sunk by Allied planes, ship


• Wrecks rest 240 yards apart on bottom of Atlantic

(CNN) -- A World War II German U-boat, sunk during the Battle of the Atlantic more than 72 years ago, has been discovered off the coast of North Carolina, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Tuesday.

The German sub, the U-576, was found at the bottom of the Atlantic 30 miles off Cape Hatteras and just 240 yards from an American merchant ship, the merchant tanker Bluefields, which was part of a 24-ship U.S. convoy heading from Virginia to Key West, Florida, on July 14, 1942.

Explore sunken Nazi ship off Texas' coast

"This is not just the discovery of a single shipwreck," said Joe Hoyt, chief scientist of NOAA's Office of Marine Sanctuaries expedition, which found the vessels. "We have discovered an important battle site that is part of the Battle of the Atlantic. These two ships rest only a few hundred yards apart and together help us interpret and share their forgotten stories."

The story of U-576 was is the more tragic of the two wrecks.

U-576 sonar image from bottom of Atlantic off North Carolina coast

Bluefields did not sustain any casualties during the sinking, but all 45 crew of the U-boat were lost.

Commanding U-576 that July day was Kapitanleutnant Hans-Dieter Heinicke. According to documents from the Monitor National Marine Sanctuary, where the wrecks rest, Heinicke had radioed back to commanders in occupied France on July 13 to say the U-boat was damaged and heading back to Germany after a month-long patrol without success against Allied shipping.

A U-boat and its American prey haunt Gulf of Mexico

As U-576 began that journey home, it ran across convoy KS-520, with 19 merchant vessels and five escorts, on the afternoon of July 14, according to the documents.

Heinicke, who was on his fifth U-boat patrol with relatively little success against Allied shipping, saw a chance for redemption.

"In spite of his damaged ship, Heinicke decided to attack at all costs," a history from the sanctuary reads. "However, at 4:00 pm just before he could fire his torpedoes, one of the Coast Guard cutters picked up a sonar contact. The Coast Guard crew dropped three depth charges, followed by five more 10 minutes later."

But Heinicke pressed his attack, firing off four torpedoes about 4:15 p.m.

"The U-576 sank the Nicaraguan-flagged freighter Bluefields and severely damaged two other ships. In response, U.S. Navy Kingfisher aircraft, which provided the convoy's air cover, bombed U-576 while the merchant ship Unicoi attacked it with its deck gun," the NOAA release reads. The sub sank in minutes.

Two NOAA research vessels, the Okeanos Explorer and SRVX Sand Tiger, participated in the search for the wrecks, which were found and verified in August, NOAA said.

The wreck site is considered a war grave and protected by international law.

"Few people realize how close the war actually came to America's shores," David Alberg, superintendent of NOAA's Monitor National Marine Sanctuary, said in a statement. "As we learn more about the underwater battlefield, Bluefields and U-576 will provide additional insight into a relatively little-known chapter in American history."

Zeroing in on what caused Civil War submarine's sinking