Posted on 06/08/2007 10:40:35 AM PDT by george76
The first of the UK's new generation of nuclear-powered attack submarines has been unveiled in Cumbria by the Duchess of Cornwall.
Due to enter service in 2009, BAE Systems' Astute is the most advanced submarine of its kind and comes bristling with the very latest in military technology.
BAE said: "With a radar signature equivalent to a dolphin, it can remain undetected thousands of miles from home and hundreds of metres underwater.
"In the right conditions it can detect the QE2 leaving New York harbour from the English Channel."
its key asset is its stealth. Even with a nuclear reactor and four powerful turbines propelling it through the water, less than one watt of power is radiated, making it incredibly quiet.
Its nuclear reactor means that it will never need to be refuelled in its 25-year lifetime.
The submarine - almost half as big again as the Royal Navy's current fleet of attack boats - is one of three under construction at the BAE Systems shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness.
(Excerpt) Read more at thisislondon.co.uk ...
We had some of those at Prudhoe Bay to drag around the housing modules that were brought up prefab on the barges. Those modules were the size of that submarine part. They also used the crawlers at Canaveral to move the Saturn moon rockets. We used to joke that if somebody hikacked one of the crawlers and drove it south we could still see him going down the road 24 hours later.
Thanks for the ping—nice boat!
Britain. 3% Muslim.
America: 3% Muslim.
You are welcome.
I downsized the picture for folks on dail up.
Hmmm.....our boats could do this in the 60s. :-)
Do the crawlers for the saturn rockets go one mile in three hours ?
My understanding is that the Astute is as quiet as the previous stealth ace, the quietest German HK diesel (the Dolphin class). However it's a nuclear sub.
The Astute's power pack has (apparently) the same acoustic signature as an electric battery.
Yes. Sit in one of them when you can. It’s like inside the cockpit of a Formula I racer. Not so fast but about as low, and that baby will haul!
We’ve had all the sea lanes bugged with Texas Instrument listening devices for decades that can tell by a ships resonant frequency withing a few feet where every ship in the world is.
Don’t make me watch that... again.
hahaha
Thanks for the reality check, agere. There is a strong perception on these boards that the UK's Islamification is far worse that America's. I hope that Britons are waking up with regard to militant Islam as most are here in the states.
4 turbines?
Maybe 2 for propulsion, two for turbine generators? That’s a fairly standard layout.
4 for TG’s, plus a electric prop? That would be quieter, but a little bit heavier. We didn’t have that setup while Rickover was controlling ER’s.
On the down side, if threatened by twelve Iranians in a rubber boat, “Astute” will surrender...
tardance
The truck is higher tech than the Deathstar it is carrying.””
I think it is similar to the “crawler” that moves out shpace shuttles to and from the launching pads.
The best picture I have seen of a real OTH truck/trailer is a photo of a piece of mining equipment moved from Salt Lake City to Golconda, Nevada to a gold mine. It took something like 32 days for the trip and moved at about 2 miles an hour. It was articulated to make “turns and go up and down hills.
(wry smile) There is a strong perception on FR that the UK is like the last reel of “Dawn of the Dead”, with Zombies feasting upon our scooped-out brains :0)
Actually, they did try an electric propulsion boat, but they only made one, as it didn’t work so well. I don’t remember which boat (I believe it was a 637).
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.