Oh look! A Chinese Sub...

[creeky]

Seems a Chinese diesel-electric sub poped up next to the Kitty Hawk,

undetected! During naval execises.

Some links...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=492804&in_page_id=1811

Defense Tech's Comment on it...

http://www.defensetech.org/archives/cat_eye_on_china.html

[molonlabetn]

Methinks that there are a few sonar-operators who will be re-trained soon...

[TGO David]

Methinks that there are a few sonar-operators who will be re-trained soon...

...as anchor inspectors.

[Mark@Sea]

A diesel boat on batteries is a pain to pick up. And these days, anytime the Navy starts active pinging, some green group sues to 'save the whales'.

[Guest bkelm18]

Yeah, when diesel boats are submerged they run on batteries which is insanely quiet when compared to a nuclear boat. Electricity makes no sound, where as a nuclear reactor has pumps and valves and all sorts of other stuff that makes noise but are needed to operate. But in the end, I think complacency is what got them. But on the other hand, they probably couldn't hear anything over the Sh*tty Kitty anyway, haha. My old ship is replacing it next year when she leaves Japan to get de-commissioned.

[molonlabetn]

Nuclear boats use electric motors to drive the props, too.

The diesel/elec. sub is 1930s technology (a-la German U-boat...). Their claim to fame is likely the design of the prop itself (to minimize turbulent flow and cavitation), and the strategy of the skipper to approach underneath the thermocline, and rise silently from there.

[Guest GT_Rat]

The Kitty Hawk is a 46 year old steam powered aircraft carrier. It's probably not that difficult to sneak up on anyway.

[Guest bkelm18]

Nuclear boats use electric motors to drive the props, too.

True but you still need the reactor to make the electricity.

[Guest Steelharp]

I thought you meant you'd been to this place...

[creeky]

HAhahaha!!

See! Their everywhere!

I bet no one even heard them move in until it was too late. LOL!!

[molonlabetn]

True but you still need the reactor to make the electricity.

Exactly, the reactor and steam turbine (or parallel thermocouples) simply replaces the diesel engine. The drive system is the same.

[Guest looneeetunes]

not to be an alarmist, but it concerns me like at the bottom of the article. they completed a test shooting down a satellite in orbit. as forein countries gain tech. to send missiles that are capable of reaching american soil. that is that much closer we come to bringing war home to us. i think alot of times we should keep our nose in our own backyard. now i am not downing the war effort. i think some of this war was brought to us in n.y. but alot of times we are watchdogs for the world. and we need to become more selfreliant. how much of our goods come from china and tiawan? just to save a buck.

[Guest bkelm18]

Exactly, the reactor and steam turbine (or parallel thermocouples) simply replaces the diesel engine. The drive system is the same.

Right, what I meant was that when a diesel sub is submerged, it's running off batteries and not the diesel engine, which make no sound. When a nuke sub is submerged, it's reactor is still running which makes quite a bit more noise.

[molonlabetn]

Right, what I meant was that when a diesel sub is submerged, it's running off batteries and not the diesel engine, which make no sound. When a nuke sub is submerged, it's reactor is still running which makes quite a bit more noise.

This is true according to speculation by specialists in that field, but can neither be confirmed nor denied by the military.

[Marswolf]

I don't think it is any big secret that nuclear subs have a lot of materials to deaden sound that originates inside the boat.

I know from personal experience that the bearings on the propeller shaft are a super high grade so that they will make virtually no noise. If you could hear the reactor and it's power generation equipment, there would be no need for quiet bearings.

[Rightwinger]

The noisest part of nuke subs is the cooling system for the reactor. They use liquid sodium I believe or some other heavy metal in liquid form for the newest ones to minimize noise and still get cooling effect. A liquid under pressure and changing temperatures rapidly causes the tubing carrying it to expand and shrink. That's where you get the transient noise from the nukes. No I was not Navy and no I did not stay at a Holiday Inn last night.

[Marswolf]

Going a bit off topic....

One of the problems with out electric power generation nuclear power plants is that they took a technology that made perfect sense for a ship or boat in the 1950s and adapted it for land use. Using water to cool a reactor on something surrounded by water was a fine idea for back then. Doing so on for commercial nuke power makes less sense.

My dealings with the nuclear power industry were back in the 70s and 80s. I asked some of the engineers at Carolina Power & Light and TVA about developing a liquid sodium system back then and found out that government regulations made developing pretty much any new system financially prohibitive.

Your tax dollars at work....

[shaftbass]

The fact that this was reported by a UK news source only makes me leary as to the vailidity of the details. I have not seen it reported anywhere else except where some newspaper's website in Ohio copied/pasted the original UK story in their own paper.

When I see a reputable US news source report it, it'll give the story a little more credibility.

[fury2neon]

Please define reputable US news source. So far over the past few months since we are finally doing what needed to be done in Iraq all along, Iraq is no longer "front page" news.

And by the way, I would like to thank the previous Clinton administration for providing China with so much of our technology.

[Guest canynracer]

And by the way, I would like to thank the previous Clinton administration for providing China with so much of our technology.

[DaveTN]

This is true according to speculation by specialists in that field, but can neither be confirmed nor denied by the military.

There is no speculation on whether a diesel boat is quieter than a nuke; it is fact.

DaveTN…. USS Holland AS-32.

[bajabuc]

My carrier, the Ranger, had no sonar. That's the job of the escorts. We did very little standing in 11 months running around the Pacific we were BTW 99% of the time. Carriers are generally going too fast for sonar to work (too much disturbance by displaced water)

[Mike.357]

Buc you are becoming the king of thread revival, LOL

[bajabuc]

TY...I'm new and it's fun. I do have to rant every now and then. I kinda feel no one is taking the coming difficulties seriously. Good patriots are being sidetracked by "birther" idiocies. No one seems to remember that all of Obama's problems were started by Texas oil millionares. I'll admit he's less than I wanted but I couldn't see another Warmonger in office. Clinton would have been my first choice.

[Guest db99wj]

Politicians are like diapers, they need to be changed out for the same reasons on a regular basis.