Why Do Submarines Float So Low?
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- čas přidán 1. 06. 2024
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In this video, we take a look at how submarines work. We dive into the stability considerations and touch upon how they are powered and how they generate oxygen.
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Great video! Although I have an idea how submarines operate and navigate but I'd have loved it more if you had explained the emergency diving, surfacing and how ballast tank operations. I suppose I owe you a thank you for the information you have already put in tis video :D
Conflict of nations is actually fun Playing it right now
A great game my favorit is ww3 4x
My navy is bad tho
NO! NO SPONSOR BAD CZcamsR!
Submariners rules
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I clicked the link but no special pack
One of the most important differences between submarines and other vessels is that when submarines slip beneath the waves, they more often than not come back up.
@Confused Cactus75 Indeed a point worthy of consideration.
I think you reversed that. I would say:
One of the most important differences between submarines and other vessels is that when other ships slip beneath the waves, they more often than not come back up!
@@tjampman Timing is everything, right? 😁 Srsly, it took me a moment!
Every ship can be a submarine for once in their life
@@namespacestd131 Right after that minesweeping demo. 👍🏼
Besides stability while surface running, the other reason a sub sits low in the water is optimization of design. The more mass that can be dedicated to the hull thickness, the deeper the sub can safely dive. So the hull is made as heavy (thick) as possible, leaving just enough buoyancy for satisfactory surface running.
thanks for the answer :)
Also to keep the prop underwater lol
@@biscuitag97 i'm so dumb, i didn't think of that haha
Just to be clear the outer hull (external body) doesn't actually take any pressure
@@888berg air pressure and water pressure
FYI for those that need to know... the submarine pictured throughout the video is *NOT* an Ohio Class, which is a Ballistic Missile or Cruise Missile Submarine, it is a Virginia Class, which is known as a 'Fast Attack' Submarine. The difference is that Missile Subs, also known as 'Boomers', are designed either to make entire cities vanish under a mushroom cloud (forming part of the US Militarys Nuclear Triad), or fling a whole bunch of Tomahawks to zerg-rush enemy defense systems, or just blow up a particular thing you really don't like.
A 'Fast Attack' Submarine (the name comes from their speed FYI), is meant to patrol the oceans as a silent hunter. Be it enemy shipping, or enemy submarines (especially other Boomers), their role is to just hunt. Now, yes, modern Fast Attacks do have the ability to launch Tomahawks or Harpoon Missiles, however, they rarely carry such weapons as they take up valuable torpedo space, and when they're used, tend to mark the subs' location like a giant neon sign, making them easy pickings for either another submarine, or worse, Anti-submarine helicopters, aircraft, and warships.
interesting. i would've thought submarines would prefer to fight surface ships than another sub. for the aircrafts it's easy to see why they have inherent advantage
@@kylestephens9593 Usually, they served by Diesel-Electric because they can run the generator occasionally, reducing the signature (unlike nuclear engine that can't be turn-off easily). They also much smaller, nimble, and don't need to stay underwater forever anyway for storing big nuclear warhead.
But, American being American pushing all the submarine into nuclear powered instead because why not.
@@bocahdongo7769 you mistakenly replied to me instead of @Jonathon Davonger :D
@@kylestephens9593 Don't worry, it's right. Just serving you with more information with neutral context
@@bocahdongo7769 French subs are also all nuclear powered, the Boomers like the Fast Attacks
submariner is considered to be the toughest branch of any country's navy. its very hard and leaves a huge toll on a person to be locked in a tin can, underwater for months, so submarines always have the best foods available with treats and deserts. to keep their spirits up!
While that's all true, keep in mind that the majority of the crew on large ships (aircraft carriers) might go an entire deployment without seeing the sun (ship engineers, cooks, medics, etc.) but it won't be quite as cramped as on a submarine.
Living inside that stinky metal tube is obviously a very hard job to do 😜
@@JWQweqOPDH its not easy, for sure. Aircraft Carriers certainly can't have windows and water slides and whatnot, like some cruise ships :-) but it still really can't be compared to overall stress of a submariner. Next to being locked and cramped in much tinier compartments, you still find yourself deep under the surface with next to NO chance of rescue if things turn... south. The smell, all the restrictions and limitations that come with diving...
Toughest branch of ANY country's navy! RESPECT!
I really like your choice of word "tin can" which makes me think a goofy scenario where someone made a submarine out of tin and implodes violently when it goes in the deep water
I've heard from some submariners that they use up all the fancy stuff like steaks and other refrigerated meats in the first 2 weeks, then it's all bland, canned, and plastic sealed hell for the rest of the mission. This is mostly because it spoils.
Nice video! Just a quick point at 5:40, integrated electric propulsion is only a recent (re)development in nuclear submarines, the majority of SSNs use steam turbines mechanically linked to the shaft. IEP is quieter though, so it is increasingly featuring on new SSNs.
It is becoming increasingly more common with IEP, but most of the newer and upcoming nuclear submarines as of now are still going to be driven directly off of the steam turbine.
It reminds me a bit of trains, where there were all sorts of weird and wonderful systems to get energy from a diesel engine into the wheels, but in the end it's a hell of a lot more efficient to make electricity and go from there.
@E Van I thought that was for emergencies, they use amine scrubbers normally
@E Van that is only with diesel electric submarines.
Nuclear submarines generate it with electrolysis.
They can stay underwater for as Long as their food supply lasts
@E Van Electrolysis is the primary method of oxygen generation, with SCOGs (oxygen candles) used only as a reserve, in the event of electrolysis plant failure, needing to top up the supply beyond what the electrolyser can make (e.g. if there are lots of extra people on board like on ICEX) or to maintain a quiet state.
animations have been really on point and the content is always fascinating. here is my internet points, good sir
Thanks!
This is the most reddit-y comment I've ever seen on CZcams.
@@ruinedlasagna reddit moment
Submarines are fascinating vessels, I love them
Der Alte, Kaleu auf U-96
I have or had no interest in serving in the Navy but I too find ships fascinating especially submarines. No idea why.
@@phillipg9345 you don’t have to like warships to like ships in general. My favorites are ocean liners, for example
@@minchmeat my interest in passenger liners is basically what makes them work, why they float. How a modern cruise ship doesn't fall over. Of course the accidents, why, how they happened.
As for warships the Iowas have my vote for most gorgeous ships ever. US resident so I guess I'm biased.
Actually, once submerged, you don't use compressed air to pump water from the variable ballast tanks to achieve and maintain neutral buoyancy. You use pumps, specifically - the trim pump. And typically, you don't even use compressed air to surface either. Instead, you drive to the surface and broach the ship. Once broached, you maintain enough speed to keep the boat broached and you then start a low-pressure blower to blow low-pressure air into the top of the main ballast tanks (MBTs), thus pushing water out of the MBTs through the always open flood ports at the bottom of the MBTs. Compressed air is more or less a precious commodity on a submarine. You've only got so much tank space to hold it and can only compress so much before you need to go to periscope depth to take a positive pressure in the boat so you can then start running the hi-packs (air compressors) to recharge the air packs since to compress air, you have to get air from somewhere and there's only so much air inside the pressure hull. So as you run compressors to compress air, you're depleting the available air inside the pressure hull. By taking a positive pressure in the boat, you basically have some excess air so that as you run the hi-packs and use up air, you're consuming that "extra air" so that when you're done - you're basically back to normal pressure in the boat, or 14.7 PSI.
Yeah, so many videos on YT get that wrong and think submarines use the ballast tanks and compressed air to controll the depth of the boat.
But the ballast tanks are always full and give the boat neutral buoyancy when submerged. Only the regulating tank and trim tanks are used to adjust the buoyancy by pumping water in and out.
I loved the diesel engine sound the recharging sub made
Haha, I couldn't find a diesel submarine sound in my library, so I used a truck.
that is one of the things I miss most about the boat. The sound of the diesel starting up always renewed my appreciation for the wonderful feat of engineering that submarines are.
Nice pfp
@@CasualNavigation there are probably scenes from "Das Boot" where one could sample the sound but honestly the truck seemed pretty close :D
@@CasualNavigation Here ya go... czcams.com/video/ckk3eoDR7Oo/video.html
"So, why do ships need to when they ". Stability. Always, stability. Seems like stability is somewhat important for seagoing vessels.
5:42 There's one thing you didn't mention, and that is that atomic submarines make noise from the incoming water to cool the reactor. This noise is far louder than the propeller
Then you have the Swedes with their near silent stirling engines. Amazing.
@@beardedchimp Don't forget germany with our Type 212 diesel electric subs which are also pretty silent ;)
Both of those are diesel electric. Quiet, but not strategically as useful.
SmarterEveryDay has made an extensive series of videos covering life inside a sub, including how they move underwater and how they see, its really interesting
Definitely a must watch!
I'm pretty sure the method of oxygen generation he shows is not electrolysis.
That's classified.
@@chrisbanbury He showed electrolysis and O2 candles, they were on candles because their electrolysis system was down.
And how they see is by listening. That's the secret sauce. Also something we all hopefully learn over time.
Darn.. I was planning to use that length measurement at 7:57 to build my own, but that disclaimer that the information is not to be used as such, is really putting a damper on making one in my back shed
They also have chemical oxygen generators (called "candles") onboard that can be used when oxygen goes too low. These work by thermal decomposition of chlorates:
2 NaClO3 -> 2 NaCl + 3 O2
There si a great hands-on presentation of the device on SmarterEveryDay channel (one where he visits an actual nuclear submarine).
The candle burns slowly, generating oxygen for many people. It should be noted however that chlorates and perchlorates are hazardous being a powerful oxidisers - there was an explosion on HMS Tireless (S88) back in 2007 taking life of two sailors because one such candle has been contaminated by hydraulic oil.
The animations are high quality and serve to illustrate the points. I must nitpick: for the electrolysis, the anode should have twice as many bubbles as the cathode.
Well spotted!
Good job
Nuclear submarines do not use compressed air to displace water in the ballast tanks to create neutral buoyancy. The ballast tanks are completely flooded with water. Buoyancy is maintained using trim tanks and electric pumps to pump water in and out. There are also aux tanks and drain tanks that can be manipulated to maintain neutral buoyancy and an even trim angle.
There are two ways to get the water out of the ballast tanks if you want to surface. The first (and most fun to ride in) is using high pressure compressed air to “emergency blow” air into the ballast tanks making the sub shoot to the surface. The normal way to surface is to proceed to periscope depth, raise an induction mast out of the water and use a low pressure blower to blow air into the ballast tanks. As the air pushes water out through holes in the bottom of the ballast tanks, the sub becomes positively buoyant and comes the rest of the way to the surface.
At least that is how we did it when I was an EM1(SS) PLANKOWNER on the USS Bremerton (SSN-698) where I earned my dolphins and became “Submarine Qualified”.
doesnt rapid ascension cause problems for people? or does the internal cabin pressure keep everything normal and change through depth?
@@ninjadragonblade I would take a guess and say that a submarine cabin would stay at sea level pressure all the way down, if the pressure inside a vessel does change and I’m wrong I can’t imagine the change in pressure is much different to what you feel when landing/ taking off in a commercial airliner, your ears pop etc
You shouldn’t be typing that info out bud
@@viniv1d1vici98 Why shouldn't he do just that?
Don’t worry about it
As a cook, I sometimes like to imagine being a cook on a sub. It just seems more interesting than being a cook in a hotel - but if I imagine it too vividly, I realize I would be terrified to be sealed in a can hundreds of meters below the surface.
On the upsides : you'd have the best ingredients you can realistically ask for given to you because the navies of the countries with nuclear submarines dedicate a lot of resources to the food of said vessels to keep moral high, so there's good upsides to it as well (though the idea of being in a tin can at the bottom of the sea hidden from everyone where we will be long gone by the time we are found in case of an emergency is still frightening, hey, at least they have good desserts !)
@@sephikong8323 On the downside: you can have the best equipment and ingredients and still be a bad cook, but in a submarine you are sealed off hundreds of meters below the surface, together with a unhappy crew.
There's a decommissioned(non-nuclear) submarine, the USS Blueback, on display in Portland, Oregon. I took a tour of it once and it was amazing, especially learning about the gruelling schedule the crew has to work.
Aye. ‘Das Boot’ was not a movie as much as a documentary.
Same could be said with Down Periscope
OMSI is a wonderful place. I loved touring the sub when ever I visited
I have to say, your ad read was VERY good. Just a very neutral, comforting delivery. Honestly, advertisers would do well to hire someone with the kind of ad read you just did. Sounds SUPER good and professional.
I mean, I loved the topic and coverage of subs, don't get me wrong. But that ad read stood out to me as outstanding.
Thanks Joseph
I really enjoyed this one! I didn't know much about submarines, so this video was really refreshing :D
I remember a coworker of mine telling me a story about the time a lady asked him why the light flash symbol on the charts pointed down for buoys. He told her it was so the submarines could see them and she believed it :D it always makes me chuckle when I think of that.
Thanks Bailey. It was fun to do research into a different topic.
I'm a qualified submarine officer.
Happy to answer any (unclassified) questions. ;)
@@MesaperProductions
What r the exact differences between nuclear based submarine and electricity based submarine? Which is better?
Which is costly? Tx. S.Shankar India.
@@vijayshankar8900 Very difficult to give short answer to that question.
Nuclear subs use a nuclear reactor to make steam to turn turbines to turn the propeller and to make electricity.
Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) subs use fuel cells to make electricity to power a motor to turn the propeller.
The nuclear sub has near infinite range, but is more expensive.
@@MesaperProductions TX a lot.
My old boss was a submarine captain. He said alot of the navigation was knowing where you wasn't, opposed to knowing where you were. So long as you knew you weren't near the hazards then they were happy. Seems odd coming from surface boats where its all about fixing precisely where you are and where you want to go.
I thought this was going to be a copypasta....
I hope your old boss wasn't the ex captain of HMS Ambush as he would have been incapable of following his own advice
@@angrydragonslayer sorry to disappoint. 😂
@@angrydragonslayer The submarine knows where it is at all times. It knows this because it knows where it isn't. By subtracting where it is from where it isn't, or where it isn't from where it is, whichever is greater, it obtains a difference, or deviation. The guidance subsystem uses deviations to generate corrective commands to drive the submarine from a position where it is to a position where it isn't and, arriving at a position where it wasn't, it now is. Consequently, the position where it is, is now the position that it wasn't, and it follows that the position that it was is now the position that it isn't. In the event that the position that it is in is not the position that it wasn't, the system has acquired a variation; the variation being the difference between where the missile is and where it wasn't. If variation is considered to be a significant factor, it, too, may be corrected by the GEA. However, the submarine must also know where it was. The submarine guidance computer scenario works as follows: because a variation has modified some of the information the submarine has obtained, it is not sure just where it is, however it is sure where it isn't, within reason, and it knows where it was. It now subtracts where it should be from where it wasn't, or vice versa. And by differentiating this from the algebraic sum of where it shouldn't be and where it was, it is able to obtain the deviation and its variation, which is called error.
@@naysaykiller928 YES
Growing up, my parents told me that I could be anything I wanted to be.
So now, I'm an Oscar-II class, Russian-built nuclear submarine.
Those are some *good* parents.
@@jaex9617 Yeah, they were good. My father was a simple buoy in the Bay of Biscay, who had dreams of travelling the high seas. My mother was a cod-fishing trawler off the North Sea.
@@threethrushes 🤣
@@threethrushes :D
Señior NaTo, it's called «Antjej». And, right, if you'll read it as an English word you're going to read it right, **trust me**
In my experience Ballast tanks are always flooded completely while submerged. Trimming he boat neutral is done via trim tanks and trim pump. HP Air evacuation of the main ballast ranks is reserved for emergency’s or a separate system called depth control when you need to change a bit quicker. To surface through ice for example.
The video said ballast tanks, not main ballast tanks. So, it would include MBTs and VB. It was an imprecise way of putting it, but not wrong.
@@42mateos Yes technically correct. If I said "Ballast Tank" I would tend to mean Main Ballast tanks, any variable ballast tanks most would call "Trim Tanks".
@@nchiley Trim can be completely separate from variable ballast depending on the setup, so I'd call them variable ballast tanks. But I fear we are now on the verge of getting into the weeds.
There are two other methods of submarine navigation, that you don’t know about. You can actually use gravity measurements to determine your location. The subtle changes in the direction of the gravity compared to a gyroscope stabilization array would allow you to determine if large objects are nearby, also specific routes could be mapped out with this, and you could turn at specific gravity angle changes. It’s extremely tricky to track those very small differences in gravity, so only really nuclear submarines would have it. Also there was the Omega system which had frequencies that could be used through water.
Hey "The casual Navigator" as i knew you. Recently i've been investigating about two accidents involving diesel powered submarines from the same shipyard. One in 2017 ARA San Juan and another in 2021 KRI Nanggala. Both shared a lot of technology and design. My question is, are these subs becoming obsolete and dangerous for crews? Why does valves fail and batteries produce hydrogen? Thank u
Hey "The casual Navigator" as i knew you. whats different?
@@grumpybollox7949 what's diferent what?
@@grumpybollox7949 It’s now ‘Casual Navigation”
(lead-acid) Batteries produce hydrogen when charging in exactly the same way this video describes water electrolysis to get oxygen. Battery acid is sulfuric acid, which when split through electrolysis releases hydrogen and SO4. When you're charging a battery you apply voltage to the terminals of the battery which are connected to the electrodes inside the battery which are submerged in the acid. So the charging initiates an electrolysis reaction of the sulfuric acid, releasing hydrogen. In addition, the sulfuric acid often isn't pure sulfuric acid but also has water in it. Water of course also releases hydrogen when current is passed through it.
Rules for Submariners
czcams.com/video/qYD0CKML_mc/video.html
5:35 to my knowledge, for the most part, nuclear submarines actually use nuclear power for propulsion. The drive shaft is connected via a gearbox to the steam-turbines. I think there was a plan in the U.S. Navy to change to electric motors powered by electricity from nuclear energy. The aim was to reduce the noise of the gearbox. But I don't think it is a standard technique.
The more volume you have sitting above the waterline, the more of your total hull volume is needed for ballast tanks. Not too efficient then, if you design too much freeboard. What you see above the water = volume of water needed to dive.
All ships, regardless of intended purpose are designed to submerge at least once. The best of these ships are designed to recover themselves from this condition.
Every boat can be a submarine.
One time.
Never thought much of why subs sit so low but now my eyes are opened.. thank you for this upload 🚢🚢
Fun fact: theres more planes underwater than submarines in the sky
Source?
@@teathesilkwing7616 I'm pretty sure I read an article about it one time I forgot the name tho
@@teathesilkwing7616 trust me bro
@@teathesilkwing7616 malaysian airlines flight 370
@@gokhansenaolivia anonymous interview
Another thing people don't realize, is that buoyancy changes depending on the salinity content of the water. The amount of math needed to calculate this "on the fly" to orientate the sub correctly is insane. Especially when they're around more fresh water, like glaciers or under sea ice.
I imagine that's all handled by computer, also part of the reason why early U-boats could only go just under the water instead of a few thousand metres
Saying as I knew the answer to the title question something like 15 minutes before I graduated from high school (in 1986), I'm stunned by how many who commented on this video thanked the OP for the information. And even though my one sailor uncle wasn't in the nuclear submarine navy, I'm inclined to thank _him_ for telling me all the same.
I would like to point out that most submarine still use a turbine as their prime mover rather than electric motor, At least for nuclear boats
The most modern nuclear submarines like the Virginia class use an electric motor as propulsion to be quieter, he was referring to that, in fact the model he shows all the time is a Virginia class, only the old generation of nuclear submarines used geared steam turbines and they were louder
@@Maverick966 No, it does not. It was proposed for later Blocks of Virginia-class subs, but in the end it was not implemented.
Yeah Sleepy is right here. They typically have backup electric motors as well though.
@@Maverick966 he was talking about the Ohio class as spoken in the start of the video, and the current tech that most navies are investing in currently are air independent propulsion
@@Maverick966 VA-class turns the shaft directly from steam turbines. The upcoming Columbia class SSBN is supposed to convert to a reduction gearless electric drive.
Me: I don't care about ships, yachts, boats, submarines. I don't even like the sea.
Also me: Casual Navigation released a new video! Time to watch it!
Thanks Stanimir.
Haha I think you're the channel that got me to play Conflict of Nations about a month ago.
First game I was sandwiched between a day 1 coalition and got absolutely slapped, but every game after that I've been #1 VP position in every game. It's very fun!
I love when I get answers to questions I didn't even know enough to ask about.
Amazing video, but one small error. American subs, at least before the Columbia Class use the steam generated from the Reactor to spin a propulsion turbine, they don’t use electric motors to drive the propeller.
I don't recall what the propulsion of the Virgina classes have but I talked with fellow nukes from the Jimmy and it definitely seemed different from my Ohio. I would need to speak with my NAVSEA contact at the Pentagon for Columbia details. Have not concerned myself with "Hot Rock Make Steam Boat Go" in nearly 12 years. I definitely had my share of rotating a CAM to put steam into the Main Engine.
0:15 ah I was going to build a nuclear submarine until I saw the disclaimer you put in.
Same bro 😢
Didn't know I needed this, but I love it! Glad you'll be able to make videos more often now too, and happy holidays!
"Before we *dive* into that though..."
Nice line!
Nukes run on steam turbines last I checked. Of course it’s been 20 years since I’ve been underway. Diesels run on batteries but, well, they also run on friggin diesel. Then again the tea kettle wasn’t exactly quiet. Maybe they’ve invented the Caterpillar drive. Haha. I would like to have seen Montana.
I really enjoy your content!! Thank you for all the work you do in Researching and Producing your Videos!!!
Thanks Matt. Glad you enjoy it.
A family friend worked subs in the 80’s and he told of returning to port with absolutely no food left on the boat. I think he said there was one item left in the freezer, that was it.
who knew one of the things my life was missing is detailed knowledge of shipping logistics and information on the many interesting topics that entails... thankyou for filling a small gap my brain had spare .. :-) seriously.. regards p
I love how the submarine was measured in water displacement instead of mass / weight because technically the mass changes depending on when it wants to go up or down
I mean isn't it common to measure the displacement of ships?
@@madogthefirst The point is the displacement of the submarine is whatever the captain wants it to be
Ships have ballast tanks too. Just not enough to make them sink.
Also the displacement of a submarine changes based on whether it is surfaced or submerged.
That was a great video as always. I hope to see more about subs and other special sea vessels
I have a few ideas for other interesting ship types.
My grandfather, who worked at submarine shipyard all his life, told me a lot about them, but I was still glad to watch a video about submarines on such a cool channel
While some would pad it into a 10 minute video answering that one questing, this chap just throws nonstop facts for 8 mins - Good show!
Most nuclear subs actually have steam powered propulsion, not electric. The COLUMBIA class will be the first electric drive nuclear sub for the US (excluding experimental subs like NR-1)
An interesting fact about submarines is that you’ll never see the propeller.
To recognize a submarine usually the only way is by listening (as you can’t see shit underwater), and usually the only sound that will be picked up by another submarine or specialized ship is the propeller of the submarine. And in each subs and specialized ships you’ll have someone trained to be able to recognize the type, or class of the submarine (and even the actual submarine sometimes).
However, the sound of said propeller is directly connected to the form of said sub, so by keeping the form of it a secret, you’ll cause other nations to have more difficulties recognizing who you are.
I guess keeping the sun low when surfacing is also tied to that goal of not showing the propeller.
There was a French film that I watched on Netflix that was about this. The main character was one of those guys, and nicknamed "Golden Ears", and he as part of the plot, recognized a strange propeller signature that matched up with a whale, but also a decommissioned Russian sub that was sold.
@@volatile100 was also in Hunt for Red October, where he thought it was a 'seismic anomaly' until he realised it was the sub they were looking for. (one of my favourite movies...)
Thanks for sharing this, you answered a lot of questions I had.
I’m glad you let us know the diagrams are not for building nuclear subs, I was close to finishing my own nuclear sub until I read that
Inertial navigation has been used on Apollo missions when orbiting the Moon - there is no signal behind the Moon so spaceship used the system to keep a frame of reference when the telemetry was cut off.
Shipping is divided into two categories - submarines and targets.
Can always spot those with dolphins :D
Or those who know those with dolphins, anyway
Every time, professional and with class. I just love Your videos
First video to actually explain ballest tanks. I was never 100% sure. 👍
Fantastic
A very well done, and accurate description of how subs work! I just have to add a few fine points...
Regarding bouyancy - its pretty hard to get the buoyancy precisely neutral. In practice, it is typical to keep it slightly positive and use the diving planes fore and aft to overcome this. In effect, the sub is "flying" underwater using the planes as wings.
Propulsion - one thing that isn't mentioned is that conventional propellers are actually pretty noisy. The props on military subs have been carfully designed to reduce noise as much as possible. That's why if you are ever at a submarine launching at a shipyard, the prop is always covered. The exact shape of the prop is highly classified information.
Ballast tanks are not used to trim for neutral buoyancy. Trim tanks are used instead. Water is pumped in and out using an electrically powered pump.
Ballast tanks are used when initially submerging the ship. Air is only added to the ballast tanks to rapidly surface in an emergency.
Submarines also use dead reckoning (speed and heading) to calculate position in addition to inertial navigation.
Most nuclear powered subs use steam turbines to propel the ship with an electric motor for emergencies.
Diesel boats do not need to surface to run their engines to charge batteries. They usually raise a snorkel mast to draw in the air needed while the rest of the ship stays submerged.
In addition to food, a nuclear powered sub also needs repair parts and other consumables to keep the plant running.
Your channel brings me much joy, thanks!
Thanks Jason!
I heard the Seawolf submarine that just did a 6000 mile surface transit from Guam was absolute hell
Oh those poor bastards
You modeled the Submarine ballast tanks wrong. The way that a Submarine was discredited to me by submariners(ret. US Navy, and they could only tell me what they’re allowed to share with other were the very extremely bare bones basics of the how a submarine actually function.) they told me to think of a Submarine as a “Ship within a bigger Ship.” When the submarine is on the surface, the “Bigger Ship” is the Submarine, but when they dive. The “Bigger ship’s hull” is filled with water and the “smaller ship(the crew compartment)” inside becomes the hull of the ship.
The CZcamsr “JiveTurkey” did a video yesterday of the Soviet Typhoon Submarine and in it he showed how the submarine fills with water around the ICBMs’ launch tubes as the Ballast tanks and as a form of safety if there’s a fire in one of the tubes that fire is contained within that tube and the crew is protected.
never thought about ship within ship before, thats fascinating thanks
But doesn't the "whip-within-a-ship" describe it as having ballast tanks surrounding the cre department? wasn't that how CN presented it in the video?
I am not sure I understand your description.
They're called double hulls. In between that space is the ballast tank.
I think jiveturkeys channel is now called Subbrief
You do know that it's just an illustration to demonstrate a concept, right? Not a detailed blueprint of a submarine? Therefore it needn't be 100% true to life - not to mention there are loads of different kinds of submarines, for a large number of purposes, which are often designed differently from one another.
Smarter everyday has a fantastic series about submarines
Very interesting and informative. Thank you.
Theoretically, if you were to make a sub that is autonomous enough and large enough, it could produce all the food for indefinite (ish) survival. Can't wait for that autonomy tech to come around, imagine entire submersible aircraft carriers or cities able to move wherever there needed. That's a scifi novel waiting to happen.
or they could just catch some fish
@@vinicius464able Yeah, catching fish, or maybe if the technology is there you can grow some plants too, with some UV lights or something to grow it,
Hydroponics?
Surfaced subs sitting low also make them very hard to spot. One evening on Alcatraz (yes, the former prison in San Francisco Bay) I was watching the ship traffic and saw a tug whose lights said "I'm towing something over 200 meters" so I looked but did not see lights for the towed vessel. Slowly my eyes picked out the silhouette of a sub with no lights against the city lights. They did not want to be observed. They must have gone upbound to Mare Island Shipyards that were still an active Navy repair center and did not want anyone to see the sub going in for some reason.
"I am towing something over 200 metres" is probably a pretty big giveaway to any enemies that know the light signals, which they would if they are looking for subs...
They did not want to be seen, but loudly announced they were towing something reasonably big with no lights and the shape of a submarine... If it looks and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck, in this case though, it was probably a submarine.
If they didn't want to be seen, guess what: they'd have been submerged, it is after all, a submarine...
It's hard to hide a 200 m vessel in busy waters near land while also avoiding collisions. The way they did it made the maneuver safe for the submarine and limited the amount of people who could guess what was going on to just the people around that knew the meaning of the lights, as opposed to lighting it like a christmas tree for everyone around to see and take pictures of it.
Btw, one would expect the navy to have a bit more of an idea about how to operate a military vessel than we do.
@@moteroargentino7944 The navy doesn't care about some curious kids spotting their submarine, they care about spies seeing it. Exactly the type of person who would recognize the light...
This is like hiding a pillow by placing it on the couch...
Where would they attach a light to a sub anyway, they could have a light in the superstructure but perhaps that was part of what was broken...
Surprisingly, most submarines do not have a discoball and spotlights hanging off of them so having it towed without those lights sounds pretty standard.
@@someguy4915 The only place where a submarine can't be found (usually) is open waters. Anywhere near a shipyard is a hotspot that you know is observed, spies are not dumb. You don't want to be invisible, just not too evident. Especially when the alternative is a potential collision with other ship.
I’m glad you told me to use that blueprint to build a submarine. It’s going to save me a lot of time in the future knowing that I’ll have to look elsewhere for sub blueprints
Regarding the propulsion, there is actually a noise difference between Diesel and nuclear boats. With diesel subs when you're running underwater, you are running a bunch of batteries(which don't make a lot of noise). With nuclear you also constantly run your nuclear reactor since they aren't exactly an ON/OFF in 5 sec thing. Which makes diesel boats quieter when they are not recharging.
If I didn't have a phobia of things underwater, I would probably have seriously considered becoming a submariner.
The idea of being in a submarine in general is terrifying. Fascinating vessles, but I could never serve on one.
The only thing separating you from drowning and a few atnospheres worth of pressure is the hull that's however many inches thick (maybe even feet, idk) and the hope you don't run into anything.
You might not surface for *months* at a time, no sunlight or visual reference to the outside world (not that there's much of one in the open ocean anyway... but still)
The submarine you drew is not an Ohio class but a Seawolf.
Thanks for the disclaimer in the beginning, I was about to build one n my shipyard.
I've seen videos on food storage on nuclear subs, they pack it in EVERYWHERE. Galley pantry, freezer, under the floorboards, under bunks when there's room, literally every space is packed with food.
Though yes these are good points to "why submarines float so low" physically, logistically and strategically there's so much more at play and different strategies for different countries
"On the surface they are just like other vessels. As they slip beneath the waves however, there are some differences."
Spoiler Alert:
They come back up.
Nice video. Very helpful thanks.
This channel never fails to fascinate, and educate, thank yiu!
Glad you enjoy it!
Military subs maintain positive buoyancy at all times. This is so that if everything suddenly stopped working, the sub would float up to the surface. They maintain depth by forward motion, and the water pushes slightly down on the bow and stern planes (the "wings"). If the submarine stopped moving it would float up slowly. This is also how trim (left-right tilt) is maintained.
The screws (not propellers) are mostly turned by steam turbines, not electric motors. The loudest part of the boat is the reactor itself, and Petty Officer Pumpy McHardbod dropping his free weights.
Also, submarine food is almost all canned, not at all the fresh fruits and veggies you showed in the video.
No they do not
I think i disagree with almost everything you said there, which is impressive...
@@kdrapertrucker Yes they actually do.
@@joshuacheung6518 That's a shame because it's all true.
@TK-593 can't dive if you're "always positively buoyant"
I agree with the drive system and noise
Fresh food is available shortly after a resupply, then it swaps to dried goods and frozen foods, not canned... at least as far as I'm aware on american subs...
🤣 "Not to be used for building a nuclear submarine"
excellent video, very enlightening!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks a lot for this interesting explanation! 👍
There is something called "passive sonar", where ambient noise is by an array of microphones (and a sophisticated computer) can be used to see without the need for active sonar pulses. Though I am not sure if it wen beyond the prototype. I read about it in Scientific American, if I remember it correctly.
Also, doesn't CO_2 scrubbers extract oxygen O_2 from carbon dioxide CO_2?
I did wonder whether such a passive sonar system existed yet.
I would imagine it is a technology they want to keep quiet about
CO_2 scrubbers don't have to produce O_2. It depends on how the scrubber works. Some bind CO2 to another substance, so that it's all in one place and not in the air, others strip the C from the O_2.
Usually the first kind is less complicated are thus more desirable on submarines, where equipment failure often means death is much more likely
@@CasualNavigation If you know about hydrophones at all, which were actually invented before active sonar, that is the same thing as a passive sonar. Just rebranded.
Passive sonar is the go-to method for detecting ships and submarines, tracing back to WW1 Hydrophone arrays.
The Chanel SubBrief has extensive videos about active and also passive sonar.
The problem with passive sonar is, that it can only detect noise sources, so the sea bed and flotsam are still invisible.
Nuclear submarines are so discrete an accident happened some years ago: a French and a British sub collided under Atlantic's ocean. They were slow and the damages were sustainable so they returned to their respective harbour
Fascinating video as usual. Thanks again.
Thanks Bill
Excellent as always!
i've always wondered... can subs do a barrel roll? i know it sounds ridiculous and pointless, but y'know, maybe as a desperate manouvre to evade some torpedoes or something xD can they actually do a controlled roll and then retain stability after?
They could probably flood either the starboard or port ballast tanks and empty the opposite ones. However, I think this would be absolutely pointless because the sub's crossection is nearly symmetrical, and the manoeuver would likely do a lot of internal damage itself, most of it to the crew.
Depends on the submarine. Big naval ones don’t have anything strapped down and seatbelts aren’t needed, so if you tried everyone and everything would end up on the ceiling.
Smaller one or two person subs with a more plane-like cockpit rather than decks like a ship can do barrel rolls fine because the crew is strapped in.
They would do half of a roll.
@@jorisd6584 do subs not have uh, ailerons? some of em look like they have some stabilising fins at the back, and some have those little wings off the side of their towers...
i really need to come up with some decently sensible scenarios where a sub would actually _need_ to barrel roll... maybe just an emeregency manouvre to tilt the tower away from striking the bottom of a boat? or maybe if a trawler's net got wrapped around the sub and it needs to try and unwrench itself? still sounds dumb i guess xD
I'd never thought about how a submarine stays upright before, that part was really neat. But afaik, they burn oxygen candles for air, like the ones in emergency masks on planes. Are they any examples of subs that use electrolysis for air?
There's a Smarter Everyday video about making oxygen on a submarine. They used an oxygen candle in the video but they said they normally use electrolysis to produce oxygen.
All the nuclear ones, they have surplus electricity generation, nothing else makes sense
thanks guys!
Electrolysis.
O2 candles only used if 'lysers not working properly or at all.
Nuclear subs have oxygenators that make oxygen more safely than that. Chemical candles are emergency use
Idk about other countries' platforms, but as recently as the Virginia, main propulsion is still from steam turbines rather than an electric drive, and the Columbia hasn't been built yet.
Neat video. Thanks for making it :)
Thanks
Makes you wonder how the space station produces air to breathe. There's no water in space to convert to oxygen, so how do they supply themselves air? 🤔
I guess it goes up in tanks, but would definitely be interesting to investigate properly.
They use water aswell. They recycle every last drop of it and i think they fly water UP there in resuply missions. So astronauts breathe there own urin in a way.
@@wowgabber123
Maybe, but they would be sending huge amounts of water up there on a weekly basis to produce that much air and drinking water. And we all know how much water weighs.
The ISS uses electrolysis to split water molecules, much like subs. They have compressed oxygen canisters as a backup that get recharged occasionally from really ships. Finally, they have lithium perchlorate canisters that can generate oxygen, but if they're down to that, I believe there's a good chance they're about to abandon the station.
They bring up their own water and use electrolysis to replenish oxygen, but as Marko said, they recycle basically all of it. Sweat and urine is treated to become drinkable again, and they even use the leftover carbon dioxide from their breath to make even more water from the hydrogen they get through electrolysis.
"food supply is the limiting factor"
We need a billion dollar system to allow submarines to silently hunt the surrounding sea life while submerged.
Or molecular assemblers that can convert water and impurities into food. :) Lol... But that is probably 200 years away, assuming we don't wipe ourselves out via war or global warming.
After this, the mental stability of the crew will become the limiting factor.
@@terminator3000 Yep. I would not want to be trapped on a submarine for more than a day
@@thatguyalex2835 I worked with a submariner once. He told me they test prospective crews for their tolerance of that. The test was surprisingly short, far less than a day.
@@pierrenavaille4748 Wow. Only a day. Most of us humans are not used to being confined into a tin can for prolonged periods. :) The psychological impact of knowing that you're 2000 ft below the surface can grate on you. Thankfully, I have never been on a sub
Very enjoyable, and great animations.
Lovely presentation. I enjoyed this.
The exact details of how they work are *[redacted]*
One point for me is not right: Noise
All nuclear systems finally generate steam, the steam drives generators so you have power.
- All steam related systems tend to be noisy.
- As far as I remember: A former French sub was directly driven by steam: a turbine connected to the propeller was the primary propulsion system.
Yep, diesel electric subs are quieter than nuclear ones, they just don't have the range
Another thing that helps keep Submarines quiet are there propellers. They are designed in a way to create too much sound when spinning through the water. If you've ever seen a sub dock somewhere, you'll see that they cover their propellers to stop people from photographing them
I made a submarine in the game Kerbal Space Program (which is known for its amazing physics simulation) and I can confirm any submarine with a center of mass higher than the center of buoyancy will quickly roll over when fully submerged. I can only get a stable sub by ballasting the keel enough to drag the CoM down below the CoB!
0:19 Ohio bro 💀
Love the video dude keep up the good work
Thanks York Eidt
The US doesn't have electrical drive submarines yet. The newest class will be, but all other subs only have what's called an emergency propulsion motor that's electrical and not used frequently.