The torpedo storage room of HMS Talent a modern nuclear-powered attack submarine
Contents Battle Machines Submarines The First Submarines Hunley and Holland World War I Submarines Submarines in World War II The German U-Boat Nuclear Submarines Modern Submarines Life Under the Waves Weapons and Defense Inside a Submarine Timeline Fact File Glossary Index 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 29 30 32
BATTLE MACHINES SUBMARINES There is no more powerful weapon in the sea than the submarine Submarines travel under the surface of the sea as well as on the surface Speeding along under the waves these incredible battle machines search for and attack enemy naval ships with their torpedoes They also carry deadly missiles for hitting targets on land Submarine Characteristics All submarines need a very strong hull to prevent them from being crushed by water pressure when they are submerged They have tanks that are filled with water for submerging and emptied again for surfacing They also have a propulsion system that must work without needing an air supply and control surfaces for moving underwater Types of Submarine There are different types of modern military submarine Submarines are either attack submarines which attack other ships or ground targets or they are missile submarines which carry long-range nuclear ballistic missiles Submarines can also be either conventional with diesel-electric propulsion or nuclear with nuclear propulsion 6
First Nuclear Submarine This is the crew of the world’s first nuclear submarine the USS Nautilus which was launched in 1958 The crew is in the control room concentrating hard as Nautilus travels under the polar ice pack Modern Nuclear Attack Submarine This is HMS Ambush an Astute-class submarine of the British Royal Navy traveling on the surface HMS Ambush is a state-of-the-art nuclear-powered attack submarine armed with torpedoes and cruise missiles Astute-class Submarine Length 318 feet 97 meters Width 36 feet 11 m Weight 7,716 tons 7,000 metric tons Propulsion nuclear reactor Top speed 35 miles 56 kilometers per hour Crew 98 Dive depth 984 feet 300 m Weapons Spearfish torpedoes Tomahawk cruise missiles 7
