HMS Audacious, the Royal Navy's 4th Astute nuclear-powered submarine, in a launch ceremony on Thursday (27/04/2017). © Owen Humphreys
The UK's newest submarine has been launched in late April and built to with stealth capabilities. HMS Audacious, in theory it can survive under water for 25 years without needing to surface, as reported by The West Morland Gazette.
HMS Audacious, was launched in the BAE Systems dock hall in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, as one of seven Astute class submarines, designed to be the world's silent submarine.
The submarine is set to begin operating in 2018 and equipped with a large nuclear reactor (capable of delivering power to a town the size of Swindon).
HMS Audacious has been designed in such a way that it does not require to refuel until 2043. They are also capable of traveling hundreds of miles and their maximum dive depth is kept secret.
Video: https://youtu.be/hP9yTuckmsA
Seven Astute class submarines will replace the now fully retired Swiftships submarine, as well as Trafalgar class submarines, launched between 1983-1991 to be disabled within the next ten years.
They are designed to remain hidden somewhere around the world for months and even years. Fresh water is obtained by distillation of seawater and oxygen is produced by separating water (H2O). While carbon dioxide gas (CO2) is released using a special device.
But of course HMS Audacious and his sibling - Astute, Ambush, Artful, Anson, Agamemnon and Ajax - will return to the harbors once in a while and surely the submarine will not turn into gray underwater.
Their food reserves typically last for three months in water - away from natural light and fresh air - put a heavy burden on the physical and mental health of the submariners.
"The only limit on how long they will spend underwater and in the ocean is food, the ship can produce water and air itself. The longest patrol ever was for 108 days - the Polaris submarine, "according to Lord West of Spithead, a former admiral and NATO commander to Sputnik News.
"They are very clever in intelligence gathering, drowning other submarines and also denial of the sea. They are even very suitable because they can land a special force without needing to surface, "added Lord West.
But according to him, the Royal Navy needs eight units, not seven Astute class submarines to be ideal.
Although the nuclear-powered Astute submarine, it's unfortunate they can only carry the Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk ground cruise missiles instead of nuclear warheads.
The Royal Navy to date has four submarines capable of carrying a British nuclear deterrent, the US-made Trident missile. The British government has announced that it plans to replace the Vanguard class submarine with a Successor class submarine, capable of carrying a new missile currently being built in the United States.
The Labor Party has been divided due to the issue of Trident missile renewal. Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and most of his party members believe that Britain should dispose of nuclear weapons of mass destruction and will never ever use them, especially those that can wipe out billions of people.
But the Labor Party's official policy continues to support the Trident, as Tony Blair has stated and later Gordon Brown and Ed Miliband.
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May has stated that the Labor Party under Corbyn is very weak in defense and Labor MP for Barrow, John Woodcock recently said: "I will never choose Jeremy Corbyn to become British prime minister ".
Wired news website mentions that Stuart Godden, Technical Director for Submarine BAE Systems, has compared the difficulty of building HMS Audacious just like the Space Shuttle spacecraft by NASA.
"They have 5-7 crew, we have 97 or more people. They go out for a few weeks, we can 90 days. They usually only do 100 missions, we have 25 years to operate ", says Stuart Godden.
"In terms of environment, they are 200 miles in space, we are hundreds of meters below the sea. It's perfectly safe up there, because without pressure or corrosion, whereas in the oceans is very high pressure and corrosive levels ", added Stuart Godden concluded.
Will Blamey, Managing Director of BAE Systems Submarine, said at a luncheon: "We now look forward to working with Audacious crews to prepare for a sea test before the submarine joins his older brothers who have been with the Royal Navy ".
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