Submarines are versatile "vehicles". Their design allows you to balance on the surface of the water and immerse yourself in its thickness. But, like any watercraft, the submarine is not immune from the impact of insurmountable circumstances that do not depend on the will and actions of people. In history, there are cases of the death of submarines during a storm. The question is logical - can not submarines dive during a strong sea, and what depth is considered relatively safe for them if the water element is outright dispersed.
1. Depth matters
Not all submarines are capable of being in the water column for a long time. So, diesel-electric submarines periodically need to rise to the surface in order to recharge the batteries. Their crew has a tough time when a storm breaks out.
The sea element is ruthless to any vessel. Big waves can handle steamships, cruisers, cruise ships, small yachts and even submarines with ease. It would seem that what prevents the crew of the submarine from shutting down the hatches and diving under the water. After all, the deeper, the less stormy excitement is felt. If you descend 50-100 meters under the water, then the effect of the raging sea element is practically imperceptible. To overcome such a distance for a submarine is as easy as shelling pears. But that's in theory. In practice, the crew of a submarine is faced with many nuances.
If we go back to the same diesel-electric boats, they spend most of their time at periscope depth. Its size varies from 5 to 20 meters, depending on the type of submarine, its parameters and the depth of the water area where it is located. When a violent storm plays out, the commander of the submarine has to choose whether to surrender to the waves, or dive to a safe depth.
2. Who determined the safe depth for a submarine during a storm
Each submarine has its own dive limit. It depends on many parameters. When deciding how much to go down under the water, if the sea element raged, the captain adheres to certain rules. They are based not on any arbitrary depth, but on a specific number that is accurately calculated. To fully understand how it appeared, we should go back 2 centuries - to the very beginning of the 19th century.
Francis Botfort, a famous Irish hydrographic scientist, cartographer and admiral, in 1805 came up with and put forward a proposal to use a special empirical scale. It made it possible to calculate the height of the waves, knowing another "storm" value - the wind speed. However, the primary version of the Beaufort scale in practice turned out to be not very convenient and easy to use. And the accuracy of measurements left much to be desired.
It is worth giving credit to the scientist. He did not abandon his idea, but continued to work hard to improve his brainchild. Eventually, more than 20 years after the first presentation, the improved Beaufort scale gained worldwide recognition and was adopted for use in most maritime powers. It happened in 1830.
3. What is it, a safe depth for a submarine during a storm
The Beaufort scale was graded into 17 positions - points. Each of them denoted the strength of the sea waves, well, or their complete absence. Real maritime situations, including stormy ones, could be designated by “points” from 1 to 12. Points from 13th to 17th were applicable only for the Pacific Ocean. After all, it was distinguished by its “storm specificity” - regular hurricanes and typhoons.
The measurement system, invented by Francis Botfort, made it possible, based on the available data on wind speed, to accurately calculate the magnitude, speed, and also the strength of the wave. If we take as an example the wind speed from 90 to 100 kilometers per hour, then the wave height will be on average 12 meters. On the Treadmill scale, such a storm pulls by 10 points. Under such conditions, the speed of movement of the water shafts will be 55 km / h, the average wavelength will be 210 meters, and the frequency of the rolling waves will be 14 seconds.
It is also worth considering the fact that any wave, in addition to its movement along the surface of the water, also tends to spread deep into it. This movement is called circulatory. It decreases from the surface to the bottom, gradually dying out. The circulation movement can completely disappear at a depth equal to 0.5 of the length of the "surface" wave. If you add up all the parameters, you will be able to calculate this value. So, with a 10-point storm on the Treadmill scale, circulating waves will not be felt at a distance of about 105 meters from the surface of the water. So, quite simply, you can calculate the diving depth necessary for a submarine during a storm.
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Researchers believe that there is still a "pitfall" in nature, due to which modern submarines are wrecked. At different depths, there are so-called underwater or internal waves, called in the scientific language "benthic storm". Oceanologists cannot yet explain the nature of its appearance. It is believed that it occurs at the junctions of layers of water of different densities and temperatures. Interestingly, during a deep storm, waves can reach a height of several tens of meters. How to predict the onset and location of a benthic storm is another mystery for scientists.
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