The sinking and voyage of the "deep-sea behemoth"

Source: Chinese Militia and People's Liberation Army News and Communication Center Rong Media

Author: Zhou Wei, Luo Jian

On April 21 this year, the Indonesian Navy submarine "Nangala" disappeared during a torpedo launch exercise. Later confirmed by the Indonesian military, the submarine had sunk, and all 53 people on board were killed. The wreckage of the submarine was found at a depth of 838 meters in Balinese waters and has been broken into 3 sections. This military incident has aroused widespread concern around the world. Submarine research and development has a high economic and technical threshold, is recognized as a strategic weapon, and only a few countries can design and produce it themselves, and the accident has once again brought a wake-up call to all countries.

Submarines are ships capable of operating underwater. Submarines range from fully automatic or small civilian diving probes operated by one or two people for hours to nuclear submarines that can carry hundreds of people and can be submersified for 3 to 6 months. According to the volume, it can be divided into large (mainly military), medium- and medium-sized, small (pocket submarines, submersibles) and underwater automatic mechanical devices. After the First World War, submarines were widely used and had an important position in the navies of major powers, and their functions included attacking enemy warships or submarines, coastal protection, breaking through blockades, reconnaissance and covering special forces operations. Submarines are also widely used for non-military purposes, such as marine scientific research, exploration and mining, maintenance equipment, search and rescue, submarine cable repair, underwater tourism and so on.

During the Second World War, submarines became the nemesis of transport ships because of their good concealment, large combat radius, large surprise power, and strong independent combat capability, and they were also the enemies of large and medium-sized combat ships, especially aircraft carriers. However, World War II-era submarines also exposed the shortcomings of traditional diesel/electric hybrids: not only short underwater endurance, but also too slow. In order to improve the duration of underwater continuous activity, the replacement of traditional power sources with nuclear power has always been an important direction of submarine research.

The world's first nuclear submarine was actively initiated and developed by U.S. Admiral Heyman Rickover. In 1946, a group of scientists led by Rickover began to study the use of atomic energy reactors for ships to power submarines, which were later widely used on submarines.

Of course, the United States, as the first country to build a nuclear submarine, has also had many accidents. In April 1963, the American attack nuclear submarine "Longtail Shark" accidentally sank at a depth of more than 2,500 meters east of Cape Cod in Massachusetts during a large-depth submarine test, and all 129 crew members on board died, becoming a major accident in the history of American submarines. The Longtail Shark thus became the world's first nuclear-powered submarine to crash and sink.

Since then, in order to improve the self-rescue capability of submarines after accidents, various countries have stepped up research. For example, in the event of a submarine crash, a wreck buoy can be released to identify the location of the submarine crash and to get in touch with the outside world. The submarine is equipped with a single lifeguard that allows the crew to leave the boat through the torpedo tube, command room or special lifelock set. In the main ballast water tank of the submarine is also equipped with an emergency blowing and drainage system, when the submarine is wrecked, the submarine or lifeboat can inject high-pressure gas to discharge the water in the main ballast water tank, so that the submarine surfaces.

There have also been submarine accidents in Russia. On August 12, 2000, Russia's Oscar-class missile submarine, the Kursk, was participating in a military exercise when an explosion of hydrogen peroxide fuel in a torpedo caused the boat to sink, killing all 118 crew members on board.

With the development of science and technology, the tactical and technical performance of submarines is also gradually improving. In recent years, the submarine industry of various countries has been committed to the development of hull "stealth" and "noise reduction" technology, the development of nuclear-powered submarine high-power nuclear reactors, the improvement of underwater speed and sailing time, and the extension of the service life of the reactor core. The deterrent power of submarines, a "deep-sea monster", cannot be underestimated, but only by further developing submarine technology can we achieve safe voyages.

(Produced by The Chinese Militia and the People's Liberation Army News and Communication Center)