'Tsunami bomb' tested off New Zealand coast

[A Turtle Named Mack]

The United States and New Zealand conducted secret tests of a "tsunami bomb" designed to destroy coastal cities by using underwater blasts to trigger massive tidal waves.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...and-coast.html

[ASL]

...during WWII, using conventional explosives. Seems slightly less whacky after reading that part.

Whacky because using a nuke to generate a tsunami seems a highly inefficient use of a nuke. But then again, underwater nuclear devices were developed as torpedoes, and I suppose it might be more conducive to follow-on operations (eg: an amphibious landing after knocking out coastal defenses) by reducing fall out in the area concerned... Say... This is starting to sound like a real cracker of an idea!

But it would still be whacky to partner with New Zealand on underwater nuclear detonations, because New Zealand and the US don't exactly see eye to eye where nuclear weapons are concerned.

[Troberg]

WW2 was a time when lots of far fetched ideas were tested. Some worked (like the nuclear weapons and Wallis' bouncing bombs), many failed (firebomb bats, Habbakuk, the German supertanks (1500 tons...), aircraft that could submerge, carrier subs and, apparently, tsunami bombs).

It's in the nature of things that in extreme times, there is a hight ceiling for what can be tested.

[ASL]

I actually think the carrier subs were a pretty neat idea.

I could even imagine the idea getting some new life breathed into it, but with drones controlled via satellite link instead of manned aircraft.

[gopher]

Originally Posted by ASL

I actually think the carrier subs were a pretty neat idea.

I could even imagine the idea getting some new life breathed into it, but with drones controlled via satellite link instead of manned aircraft.

Well underwater drones are in use/development at the moment. I doubt it would be too tricky to develop ones with wings. Though with the insane range on the bigger drones there might not be the need for them.

[ASL]

The trick would be launching/controlling/recovering them without the sub being detected, I would imagine. USVs are typically controlled by wire. UAVs, not so much... It really would have to be controlled via satellite signal to avoid giving the subs position away. Don't know if that's an easily achievable task or not. Maybe easy enough for cruising, but not sure about landing or takeoff.

[crocoduck_hunter]

If the sub was controlling the drones, wouldn't it make the sub pretty obvious anyway? I thought the signals used for drones were pretty high energy, hard to hide transmissions.

If the drones were being operated from somewhere else, the sub could surface just to launch and recover the drones. Or, if the seas were calm and the drones were buoyant enough, they could simply be released underwater and allowed to float to the surface.

[ASL]

That's why I would think control from a remote location via satellite would be necessary. I just don't know if a satellite link would be responsive enough to allow for fine maneuvers.

I could definitely imagine it being launched with the sub submerged: they can already launch cruise missiles and ballistic missiles submerged, so why not a drone? I think the real trick would be recovery in a usable state.

[Nick Theodorakis]

Apparently there is some talk about adding UAV capability to the converted SSGN subs, but I don't know if they are anywhere close to becoming reality.

http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/...-strike-01764/

http://www.popsci.com/military-aviat...ming-spy-plane

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIbOoBtqA-I

Nick

[Troberg]

Originally Posted by ASL

I actually think the carrier subs were a pretty neat idea.

I could even imagine the idea getting some new life breathed into it, but with drones controlled via satellite link instead of manned aircraft.

Well, drones could work, as they are small and modern subs are larger. The WW2 era subs proposed could take 1-3 aircraft, which is not enough punch to motivate it. Modern missiles and subs changed all that.