So they pump the water out of the tanks, replacing it with air. The sub gets lighter and is able to surface. Thick double hulls keep the pressure comfortable inside. And because they might be a long way away from shore, many of them even make their own power on board. Fins on a submarine work a bit like wings to help steer these enormous beasts, along with propellers which push it through the water. Get the series on your phone or tablet and listen whenever you like — at home, in the car or onboard your very own ship!
Water poured in and started to flood the submarine. Witt and Thomsen immediately pounced on Bauer, one slamming him down and sitting on his chest, the other scrambling to restrain his arms and close the valve. Wide-eyed, they yelled that he was trying to commit suicide and drown them too. But Bauer had opened the seacock because he was a man who wanted to live, and because he was also a man who understood physics.
The pressure inside the submarine was roughly 1 atmosphere because it had been closed and sealed on the surface at 1 atmosphere. The pressure in the seawater outside, at a depth of 16 meters, was equal to about 2.
Therefore, the pressure difference across the hatch of the submarine was about 1. Converting the units, if Bauer wanted to force open the hatch to escape he would need to be able to move it against the kilopascals of pressure pushing the hatch door closed. The hatch door had a total surface area of roughly 1. And kilopascals of pressure from the water times the 1. Seventy-two multiplied by 9. Therefore, I exert newtons of force on the ground just by standing there, doing nothing productive, converting oxygen to carbon dioxide.
The force on the hatch from the water was , newtons. If Bauer wanted to leave the submarine, he would have needed to be strong enough to lift the Rachel Lances standing on the hatch door. Bauer opened the seacock because he knew that he needed to equalize the pressure differential. If he could partially flood the submarine and bring the pressure inside up to 2.
The door would swing open with ease, and all three submariners could swim to safety. More likely the door would have blown open violently as the buoyant air tried to escape and shoot to the surface, but either way, exit pathway achieved.
Talked down by Bauer and his mastery of the laws of pressure, Witt and Thomsen released their captain and allowed him to flood the sub. The increase in the partial pressure of the carbon dioxide was temporarily difficult to tolerate, leading to gagging and choking, but the submarine flooded quickly and the pressure was equalized. Bauer, Witt, and Thomsen were the first three submariners ever to successfully escape a submarine. They did it in the year , and they did it through a mastery of the scientific principles of the underwater world.
To control its buoyancy, the submarine has ballast tanks and auxiliary, or trim tanks , that can be alternately filled with water or air see animation below. When the submarine is on the surface, the ballast tanks are filled with air and the submarine's overall density is less than that of the surrounding water.
As the submarine dives, the ballast tanks are flooded with water and the air in the ballast tanks is vented from the submarine until its overall density is greater than the surrounding water and the submarine begins to sink negative buoyancy.
A supply of compressed air is maintained aboard the submarine in air flasks for life support and for use with the ballast tanks. In addition, the submarine has movable sets of short "wings" called hydroplanes on the stern back that help to control the angle of the dive.
The hydroplanes are angled so that water moves over the stern, which forces the stern upward; therefore, the submarine is angled downward. The number of days that a crew can survive depends on how long they have already been performing duties underwater and how well prepared they are for losing power. In relation to the Argentine sub he adds: "Outer range appears to be 10 days if they were well prepared.
One of the most important practices is for trapped crew members to slow down their breathing rates in order to conserve oxygen. Dr Farley says that this it is a hard thing to train people to do, adding that in such circumstances: "My guess is that they would be cautioned to reduce activity and reduce speaking in order to save oxygen.
The conditions, likely to be cold and damp, may well have a detrimental impact on morale, but the personnel on board will be well trained and disciplined. They will likely establish routines, making themselves as comfortable as possible while minimising their movements and supporting one another as they await rescue. The response to these emergency incidents has also been improved at the international level since the Kursk disaster. An organisation called the International Submarine Escape and Rescue Liaison Office, based in Northwood just outside London, co-ordinates all international response and is playing "a key role in this operation", Mr Little says.
With a possible shortage of oxygen and a build-up of carbon monoxide, suffocation is the number one risk. Oxygen can be supplied either through canisters or generators that perform a process called "electrolysis" - which effectively separates components such as water and oxygen.
However a lack of power will hinder this process and the supply may gradually run out. There are other dangers that could also come into play. Dr Farley points out that if a compartment within a trapped sub becomes flooded, this can lead to "flash fires and other nastiness" as the air gets further compressed.
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