Navy dolphins discover rare old torpedo off Coronado
SAN DIEGO — In the ocean off Coronado, a Navy team has discovered a relic worthy of display in a military museum: a torpedo of the kind deployed in the late 19th century, considered a technological marvel in its day.
But don't look for the primary discoverers to get a promotion or an invitation to meet the admirals at the Pentagon — although they might get an extra fish for dinner or maybe a pat on the snout.
The so-called Howell torpedo was discovered by bottlenose dolphins being trained by the Navy to find undersea objects, including mines, that not even billion-dollar technology can detect.
"Dolphins naturally possess the most sophisticated sonar known to man," Braden Duryee, an official at the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific said after the surprising discovery.
While not as well known as the Gatling gun and the Sherman tank, the Howell torpedo was hailed as a breakthrough when the U.S. was in heavy competition for dominance on the high seas. It was the first torpedo that could truly follow a track without leaving a wake and then smash a target, according to Navy officials.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-torpedo-dolphins-20130518,0,7621822.story
= new reply since forum marked as read
How in the world did they do THAT?
The total weight was 580 pounds.
Variable pitch propellers??!! 25 knots??!!... in 1870?
Whoever engineered this was a genius.
Usage:
Anti-surface ship
Propulsion:
132-lb flywheel spun to 10,000 rpm
Speed:
25 knots
Range:
400 yards
Length:
11 feet
Diameter:
14.2 inches
Weight:
580 pounds
Explosive Charge:
100 pounds wet guncotton
Primarily the work of LCDR J. A. Howell, the Howell torpedo was developed between 1870 and 1889. It required preparation prior to firing by spinning the flywheel for mobile power. If the torpedo was prepared ahead of time, very little recharging was necessary at the time of firing. The torpedo had variable pitch propellers and a shell of brass. It was used on U.S. battleships and torpedo boats until 1898, when it was replaced by the Whitehead torpedo. The Naval Undersea Museum houses the only known Howell torpedo in existence today.