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Submarines
Submarines are naval craft that can operate for an extended period of time underwater. They are used primarily as warships, as well as for business, scientific and other purposes. Submarines are different from submersibles, which only have limited underwater capability.
2,056 Questions
What did allied warships use to locate and attack submarines?
During WWII, Allied warships used ASDIC (an early, crude form of Sonar), airplanes (some ships carried recoverable seaplanes), and visual lookouts (binoculars) to spot submarines and direct attacking vessels to the contact.
Most American World War II submarines were named after species of fish. Most early nuclear-powered submarines were named after World War II submarines. For example the submarine USS Tunny in World War II was designated SS-282. The nuclear-powered fast attack submarine USS Tunny was designated SSN-682. The first generation of nuclear-powered ballistic submarines were named after famous Americans. Most Los Angeles-class fast attack submarines are named after U.S. cities, with the exception of the USS Hyman G. Rickover. Most Ohio-class guided missle and ballistic missile submarines are named after U.S. states, with the USS Henry M. Jackson being the exception. The Virginia-class fast attack submarines are mostly named after U.S. states. The lone exception as of January 2011 is the John Warner, which is expected to be delivered in 2015.
In the USN they are generally code-named after Fish or other marine life- for example USS Whale ( SSN-638) USS Nautilus ( SSN-57l- first Nuclear sub) USS Ling ( SS-297) there are were several Sharks, and different types of sharks-both the Squalus ( latin for Shark) and Thresher ( a type of Shark with a large tail) were involved in fatal accidents the latter being an all-hands disaster, the first Nuclear sub involved in a fatal accident.
The Navy isn't ignorant of politics either; the John Warner and other submarines and ships named after key individuals in the Navy and the Government were typically supportive of the Navy and military in general while serving on Congressional Armed Services Committees.
What is the difference between a U-boat and a submarine?
U-boat, or Unterseeboot, is just the German word for the English term submarine. It literally translates to under-sea boat. The U-boat engineering led it to be particularly deadly because the destroyers that it was in direct combat against had not been built to defend against them. Links are provided.
Why is a submarine classified as a boat and not as a ship?
The Navy considers all vessels ships; however, submarines are historically referred to as boats due to the nature of the first submarines. A boat in Naval terminology is a vessel that is launched or tended from a larger ship. The earliest submarines required support vessels to maintain and launch them, hence they were termed boats.
The term "boat" goes back to the earliest days of submarine history, when submarines were literally launched from tenders (e.g., the Turtle). A 'boat" is launched from a ship - therefore, the earliest submarines were termed "boats" since they were launched and retrieved from ships.
Today, though only DSRV's and ROV's require a support vessel for operations, independent submarines are still referred to as boats not only due to the historical term, but the fact that they still require support from a Submarine Tender while in homeport for repairs and maintenance the crew cannot perform.
As Naval history and submarine technology progressed to the point where they became independent vessels unto themselves, the traditional name stuck, though the Navy itself doesn't make a distinction - a ship is ship even if it's a black sewer pipe with a nuclear reactor that travels underwater. It's not just the tradition though - all submariners are keen on distinguishing themselves from skimmers (surface ship types), and using "boat" rather than ship is one way of doing that.
Another part of that tradition is the business founded to create famed submarine builder John Holland's submarine USS Holland (SS-1), which still exists today, which has had a large part in creating submarine history as we know it - the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corp., in Groton, CT.
Submariners refer to submarines as "boats" or simply as submarines.
As a former submariner, I do not refer to them as "ships" at all, only boats or submarines. There is an old saying in the submarine community:
"There are only two types of ships: submarines, and targets!"
Why are icebergs dangerous to passing ships?
icebergs are dangerous to passing ships as icebergs are hard to spot because usually about 90% of the iceberg is under water. This could make people think that it is only a small iceberg when really it could be very big. Also the iceberg's edges are very sharp due to the very low temperatures and can cut though the ship's hull easily.
Do submersibles have people in them?
YES, most true submersibles have a 'pilot' and a systems operator. The submersibles that do not carry people are usually called ROV's or AUV's
What Adolf Hitler to order German submarines to attack American ships?
America's support of the allies led Hitler to attack American ships.
Are dogs allowed on navy submarines?
Traditionally, dogs have almost always been aboard men of war. Probably almost always un-officially (referred to as: turning a blind eye).
How do you destroy a submarine?
If we're speaking to the proposition of defeating a modern military submarine, explosives are the answer. The idea is to create a blast at a point close enough to the submarine (called a boat by most who sail on them) to damage the pressure hull and cause it to fail. We have observed several approaches across the last few decades.
The challenge has always been to detect the submarine and locate its position with a high enough degree of accuracy to drop a depth charge on it. A type of "saturation" depth charge attack might destroy a boat if the general area is defined sufficiently. We've probably all seen footage of a ship "rolling depth charges" off the stern and launching them outboard via a "gun" of sorts. But times have changed and technology has advanced.
We can use sonar and magnetic anomaly detectors to find submarines, and then use a torpedo to deliver an explosive. The modern torpedo is sometimes sonar equipped, and can be active or passive, or can switch between modes. In the passive mode, it can "listen" for the acoustic signature of the target submarine and home in. It could also "go active" and "ping" to locate a target. Some types of torpedo are wire guided and can be continuously "driven" to a target. These weapons are generally designed to actually impact the target, explode, and defeat it, and can be launched from various platforms (including submarines, of course). Lastly, there are a few powers that have nuclear equiped antisubmarine weapons in their inventory. This weapon only has to "get near" a target to create a shock wave that will defeat the hull of a target submarine, and a nuclear tipped torpedo can be equipped with any of the guidance systems already cited. As you might expect, there are nuclear depth charges as well, but in all cases, locating a submarine remains the major challenge.
Impact of Sydney attack on Australians?
They insured that they helped out the Americans all they could! And hoped like heck that the IJN wouldn't invade Australia, and hoped like heck that the IJN could be stopped at Coral Sea...which they were.
Sonar is used to communicate or detect vessels/submarines through a tube like device.
Andi:)
it is simply sending sound wave and wait the echo to return back and when measuring the timing we can know the actual lengh ,this is the same technique used by dolphins and bats
What are some common dangers of a submarine?
Probably the risk of the sub imploding from water pressure, fire in the engines, running out of air, being shot at, hitting other objects or mechanical failures, and probably a lot more.
How many nuclear submarines china have?
The PLA navy has more than 225,000 personnel and is thought to have as many as 70 submarines, 10 of them nuclear-powered
Explain how do submarines operate using the thermocline region?
Submarines use the ocean's thermal layers to hide from surface ships and other submarines. The thermal layers in the operational area of any submarine is a key tactical consideration at all times for Sonar operations.
Sound travels at different speeds based on water temperature, pressure and salinity. Sound bends toward colder water - however, when sound reaches deeper water, pressure becomes the overriding variable and bends sound back toward the surface. Knowing where the thermal layers are lets Submarine Sonar Techs (like me) know where the thermal layers are, and from there how sound will propagate through the water. This is then used for tactical operations depending on the situation, allowing a boat to hide if necessary, or position itself at the best depth to detect surface or submerged contacts.
Sound speed and water temperature is constantly monitored and charted as the boat changes depth, and thermal layers can be charted from the surface to deep depths by a device known as an SSXBT (Submarine Launched Expendable Bathyothermograph) as situations warrant. An SSXBT is launched from the boat's countermeasures tube, and once it reaches the surface, it releases a weighted probe which sinks until the probe is crushed by sea pressure. The probe is connected by wire to the boat and a chart recorder and maps more precisely the thermal layers. They're only used when necessary, e.g., you know you're heading into a tactical scenario and you need a complete Sonar profile of the current oceanographic state of the surrounding area.
As an example of how sound speed is affected by water temperature, when passing through the Gulf Stream, if tracking a target on Sonar, the bearing will change by several degrees as a result of the temperature change when passing from normal ocean to extreme warm water. Also, if sound is being bent toward the bottom by colder water from say, 100' down, and the layer near the surface is warm, a boat coming to periscope depth might not detect a close-aboard contact until the boat passes through the thermal layer. Some accidents have happened in this manner in the past where submarines coming to PD have collided with surface ships that weren't picked up on Sonar until it was too late. Prior to coming to PD, a complete Sonar sweep is performed to alleviate such problems, but the reality is that technology can't always overcome nature.
If necessary, on the rare occasions when a boat might be detected by a helicopter dipping sonar or a passive sonobuoy from a P-3 or other aircraft, the thermocline regions, depth and speed capability allow the submarine to exit the area very quickly under cover of the ocean's natural thermal layers, making it extremely difficult to track.
Density is weight divided by volume. Since the size of the hull stays the same, when the weight of the water is removed, the volume of the hull stays the same and the density is reduced.
What other nations have nuclear submarines?
US, USSR, Red China, Great Britain, and France have bona-fide atomic subs, taht is submarines powered by Nuclear reactors. all of these powers also have atomic and in some cases conventional, ( Russia has some) submarines which are equipped with long range nuclear missiles- such as Polaris, Poseidon, Trident, which are properly Missile types rather than submarine types.
Who made the first submarine in 1878?
The FIRST sub used in combat was David Bushnell's TURTLE used during the Revolutionary War in 1776. It was manned by Sgt. Lee of the American Continental Army.
How does a submarines propeller shaft go through the hull and still leave the submarine watertight?
All submarine screw shafts have seals around the full length of the shaft hull penetration area to prevent water coming in. Shaft seals can be mechanical, hydraulic, etc., but regardless they serve the same purpose.
How do submarines effect the whales?
submarines change the behavior of some whales but they do not harm whales
How do toilets work on a submarine?
Submarine heads (toilets) are pretty simple in construction and operation, and nothing at all like most people are used to. In fact, the only resemblance is that they have standard seats.
They're of stainless steel construction, like many things onboard a submarine. The biggest difference is flushing; rather than operating a handle like a normal head, there is simply a water valve that when you open it lets water into the bowl, and then you operate a large lever (about 3' long) which is attached to a 4" ball valve, which when moved manually opens the valve and lets waste drain to the sanitary tank for later disposal (overboard while underway to feed the fishies, and pumped to shore sewer lines while in port).
It's EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that all head ball valves are closed while blowing sanitary tanks overboard or to shore connections. Since the tank is pressurized with high-pressure air to force the waste out, the heads are secured and signs posted on the doors to warn crew that the tank is being purged. Failure to heed those warnings (or failure to hang the signs) has resulted in more than one unhappy crewmember with high-pressure crap in the face as a result of opening the valve while the tank is pressurized.
Can you change from surface fleet to submarines?
If you're insane enough, absolutely. I had many friends (well, not MANY) who were originally Surface Navy and volunteered for Submarine Duty.
The Submarine Force is all volunteer; in addition to a relative rating (i.e., not surface specific, like a Storekeeper or Boatswain's Mate) all you need to do is volunteer, and pass the subsequent physical and psychological testing. Aside from the minimum Administrative crew complement (Admin, Medical, Supply), submarine crew ratings are typically specialized in either Engineering, Electrical, or Electronic rates these days. Even the Torpedoman and Quartermaster rates have been combined into Machinist's Mate and Electronic Techs.
Submarine duty is considered hazardous duty, and members are compensated with hazard pay. Most guys I've known who've made the switch have enjoyed it, since the crews are smaller and more tight-knit, and the professionalism is a lot higher as well. Also, in the Submarine Navy, your respect is earned by your ability and qualifications, not necessarily your rank. A senior enlisted who is unqualified in submarines is just a FLOB (Free Loading Oxygen Breather) and is no different than any other rank that isn't qualified. A junior enlisted member who is Qualified in Submarines is considered more valuable. Rank is still respected of course, but within the crew, overall respect must be earned by ability, actions, and hard work; you don't trust anyone who can't cut it during an emergency, since you don't have as much time to respond and contain a problem like surface vessels do. I remember one Master Chief Radioman who made the switch from Surface to Submarines and felt his rank should give him everything without any work. He lasted one deployment - the CO fired him after he lost the respect of the entire crew.
It isn't easy by any means - but I wouldn't trade the experience for anything.
Are submarines faster submerged?
Modern submarines are designed to go much faster submerged. This design also limits their surface speed capability.
WW1 and WW2 submarines were not considered true submersibles by today's standards. They were essentially surface vessels that had the capability of limited submerged operations. As such, their design and propulsion made them faster on the surface and much slower underwater. Modern submarines are true submersibles in that their only limitation is that of their crews.
