Packet B: Submarine Technology

Transcription

1 Packet B: Submarine Technology

2 During WWI Matthews, Alex. (1 February, 2017). The U-boat graveyard. Daily Mail. Retrieved from The Germans ran the U-Boat campaign throughout World War I, and used the submarines to attack the Allies' trade routes. They mostly attacked around Britain and the Mediterranean, and destroyed almost 5,000 ships in total. Even hospital ships were targeted, provoking worldwide outrage. Ships like the Rewa, torpedoed in 1918, were unarmed and painted with the internationally recognised symbol of the Red Cross but were still attacked. As well as attacking the Royal Navy, U-boats focused on starving Britain by torpedoing ships bringing in food and supplies. All vessels trading with the UK were seen as targets by the Imperial German Navy, including those from neutral countries such as Norway, Denmark and the United States. The campaign started in the North Sea, when 10 submarines were sent from Heligoland to attack Royal Navy ships. However, it was unsuccessful - only one torpedo was fired and it missed its intended target - HMS Monarch. Meanwhile, two of the U-Boats were lost. The U-Boats had much more success when their attentions were turned to the war on commerce. Britain had already managed to block off Germany with its Navy, not even allowing food to enter the country, and since the Germans' main navy was much weaker than the British, they fought back using U-Boats. Admiral Hugo Von Pohl, commander of the German High Seas Fleet, declared the British and Irish seas a war zone, and the Germans send out 20 boats to form a naval blockade. They sunk a huge amount of trade boats heading into Britain. In 1917, the Germans came up with the tactic of trying to stop 600,000 tons of shipping heading into Britain each month - they believed this would force their enemies to try for peace within six months. This was a huge success - 860,000 tons were sunk in April of that year alone, the British were left with just six weeks-worth of wheat, and the Americans were forced to declare war. Towards the end of the war, the Allies had become far better at countering the threat of U-Boats. They used planes to patrol the seas - forcing them to go below the surface, where they were blind. The North Sea Mine Barrage then followed - when 70,000 mines were lain and destroyed six U- Boats between September and November In total, U-Boats sunk almost 13 million gross tons of Allies' shipping. Of the 351 boats, 178 were lost in combat, with 5,000 people killed on board them.

3 Sectional View of a German U-Boat (1915)

4 In the Modern World (1 February, 2017). From Submarines to Robots: Exploring the Deep Ocean. Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Retrieved from Filmmaker and National Geographic Explorer James Cameron on March 25, 2012, became the first human to complete a solo submarine dive to Challenger Deep, an undersea valley in the Mariana Trench of the Pacific Ocean known as the deepest surveyed spot on the planet. Cameron piloted the one-person submersible DEEPSEA CHALLENGER to the area that is 11,000 meters, or 6.8 miles, beneath the ocean surface in 2 hours and 36 minutes, gathering data, specimens, and images throughout the mission. The only other manned submersible to reach Challenger Deep was more than 50 years before--the 1960 dive of the Trieste with Capt. Don Walsh and engineer Jacques Piccard. Underwater technology has come a long way since the 1960s. Today, scientists have access to a wide range of technologies that routinely carry them down to 4,500 meters (14,764 feet) and enable them to study the deepest parts of the ocean. Human occupied vehicles (HOVs) transport up to three people directly to the seafloor. HOVs are built to withstand the extreme pressures of the deep ocean and are equipped with robotic arms that scoop up marine creatures as well as seafloor sediments. Remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) are robots tethered to the ship. Scientists on the ship manipulate an ROV through a long cable that connects the robot to the ship. ROVs can reach great depths and stay there for extended periods. Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are robots preprogrammed to collect data from particular parts of the deep ocean. While they re off collecting data, scientists conduct other research on board the ship. Hybrid vehicles combine the best features of ROVs and AUVs. On May 31, 2009, one hybrid vehicle the Nereus reached the deepest part of the ocean, the Mariana Trench. It dived 10,902 meters (6.8 miles) below the surface. We can only imagine what new underwater technologies will accomplish 50 years from now.

5 Deapsea Challenger (2012)