Submarine (the Device which changed world history)
Topics:
First Military use:
Submarines were first widely used during world war I (1914-1918), Germany had only 20 Submarines, which uses diesel engines, Royal Navy had a total of 74 submarines, In august 1914, a flotilla of ten U-boats sailed from their base in Heligoland (Germany) to attack Royal Navy Warship in the North Sea is the first submarine war patrol in history, Forces suck as the U-boats of Germany saw action in the First Battle of the Atlantic, and were responsible for sinking RMS Lusitania (passenger ship), which was sunk as a result of unrestricted submarine warfare and is often cited among the reasons for the entry of the United States into the war, During World War I, more than 5000 ships were sunk by U-boats.
Please note: U-boats are submarines operated by the German navy during world war I and II.
The German Submarine SM U-9, sinked three British cruisers in less than an hour in September 1914.
Torpedoes:
A torpedo is a self-propelled weapon with an explosive warhead, which is launched above/below the sea to hit a target below the water (bottom of the ship or submarine)
Torpedos were widely used in the First World war, both against shipping and against submarines, The Nation such as Germany, Britain, Italy, Japan used submarines in world war I.
Submarines used in World War II:
During World War I, more than 5000 ships were sunk by U-boats (Submarines), which made a nation invest a lot in Research & development for designing and building submarines.
The united states of America have successfully developed submarines and it deployed a larger submarines vessels before the start of world war 2,
Submarines used in World war 2 - USA vs Japan.
Just 2% of the U.S Navy Fleet are submarines (Example: If US Navy has 98 warships it has only 2 submarines), The two percent of the Navy fleet (Submarines) destroyed 30 % of the Japanese Navy, including 8 aircraft carriers, US submarines also destroyed over 60 percent of the Japanese merchant fleet (Goods Carrying Ship), crippling Japanese ability to supply its military forces with the weapons.
During world war 2, 314 submarines served in the US Navy, of which nearly 260 were deployed to the pacific. When the Japanese attacked Hawaii (Attack on Pearl Harbor) in December 1941, 314 submarines were sent to war. during the war, 52 US submarines were lost to all causes, with 48 directly due to hostilities, US submarines sank 1560 enemy vessels,
If the USA does not Develop Submarines, it would have loosed the war against Japan (Japan destroyed pearl harbor Naval Base is an Example for it)
If the USA has not defeated Japan, Japan would have entered the pacific to help Germany (an allied Nation in World War 2) in the war. If German and Japan Forces have joined their hands, it would have been very very difficult for Britain, France, and its allied nation to defeat them. If the scenario happens world history would be changed.
Submarines Used in World War II - Germany vs England
Germany Built Submarines which will remain submerged for a longer period of time, Also they installed improved communication devices in the submarine,
Germany attempted to cut Britain's supply routes by sinking more merchant ships (Goods ships) that Britain could replace (Shipping was vital to supply Britain's population with food, an industry with raw material, and armed forces with fuel and arms, Transporting weapons, soldier and other facilities to the country occupied by them).
German Navy (Submarine) has destroyed 3,000 allied ships (175 warships, 2,825 cargo ships) that had been sunk by U-boats.
As more Britain ships were sunken, they could not take necessary weapons, and soldiers, and can't take wealth (Minerals and Agricultural Products) from a colonized nation which is also a reason for Britain, declaring freedom (after 2nd world war) for many colonized nations.
Submarines (A Destructive Weapon)
A nuclear Reactor is also used to produce the electricity which will be supplied to a Big powerful Electrical motor, which drives submarines, As the Nuclear Reactor does not require any air from the atmosphere the submarines which use the Nuclear reactor will be submerged for a longer time,
A Compact Nuclear Reactor is need to be developed for this purpose which needs a lot of skills,
As 1 KG of uranium is enough to produce 24,000,000 KWH, it is stored and the submarine can run for a very long time without being surfaced
All Nuclear Reactor Powered Submarines have unlimited Range, They can run nearly for 120+ days submerged, the information is varied from one source to another and the clear information is not available as it was a highly secured military secret
These are Destructive weapons, they can destroy ships, and submarines, they can launch a missile to hit land targets, and they can even destroy aircraft in air (which was in development by few nations).
The modern Day submarines which are used in war are shown in the above figure
Sonar:
Sonar (originally an acronym for Sound Navigation And Ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (sound waves) to navigate, Communicate or detect the object on or under the surface of the water, such as other submarines or ships on the surface of the water.
The sonars are used to find the object (torpedoes, enemies submarines, ships, etc,, in front of submarines or on the sides of submarines. The information from the sonar is used to operate the submarines., launch torpedoes, missiles, etc.,
World Largest Submarine: (as on 2022 operational)
USS Nautilus (SSN-571) was the world's first operational nuclear-powered submarine, commissioned on 3rd August 1959.
World Largest Submarine is a Typhoon-class submarine developed by Russia Weights of 33,800-48000 Tons Submerged, Followed by Ohio-class submarine of USA weights of 18,750 tones submerged.
The below picture shows typhoon-class submarines.
Length: 175 M
Beam: 23 M
Draught: 12M
Submarines (A destructive Weapon)
The picture below shows how torpedoes (attacking enemies submarines and warships) are launched from Submarines
The picture below shows how the cruise and ballistic missile (for land attack) are launched from Submarines
Conclusion:
This topic clearly shows how the submarine (Destructive Weapon), has influenced War, It has been dominant Weapons in world war II, which changed the pace of War, the Fall of the British Empire, and the defeat of Japan at the end of the world war II is only Because of this weapon (Submarine) that why I have added a subtitle to My topic as "The device which changed world history"
As of now, nuclear submarines are operated by the United States of America, Russia, the united kingdom, France, China and India.
This topic also simply shows how important is research and development for a Nation, and how it makes a Nation powerful.
A nation that has skilled scientists and engineers will always be a powerful nation.