Submarine
From Conservapedia
A submarine is a vehicle that travels under water (i.e. an underwater boat). It should be noted that the term "nuclear submarine" refers to a submarine that uses nuclear power for propulsion, not necessarily one which carries nuclear weapons. The submarine was invented in the 17th century. Though it was originally designed for the purpose of exploration, its military benefits soon became clear. The first military submarine was the Turtle which was used by the Colonists during the American Revolution, although without success.
The first submarine to successfully sink a ship was the Confederate vessel CSS Hunley which sank the USS Housatonic during the American Civil War on 17 February 1864 in Charleston Harbour. The Hunley never returned from the mission, sinking with the loss of all crew. It has recently been found and recovered.
The first submarine commissioned into the United States Navy was the USS Holland. She was commissioned on Columbus Day in 1900 and was subsequently designated SS 1.
Submarines played a significant role in both World Wars I and II, and to this day many nations have submarine fleets, varying from the large, highly trained nuclear fleets of of the United States and the United Kingdom, to countries owning one Kilo class diesel submarine.
Today, the United States Navy operates 14 Ohio class SSBN's, 4 Ohio class SSGN's, 3 Seawolf class SSN's, approximately 40 Los Angeles Class SSN's, and 2 commissioned Virginia class SSN's.
- SSN is Submersible Ship Nuclear
- SSBN is Submersible Ship Ballistic Nuclear
- SSGN is Submersible Ship Guided Nuclear
The "N" refers to nuclear propulsion, not necessarily nuclear weapons. An SSBN carries nuclear missiles and an SSGN can carry 154+ Tomahawk cruise missiles. Other submarines can carry Tomahawks, but the SSGN loadout is extremely massive compared to that of a standard SSN.
Currently, the United States Navy maintains submarines bases in Groton, CT Norfolk, VA Kingsbay, GA Banger, WA
San Diego, CA Pearl Harbor, HA Guam and at least for the meantime there is a submarine tender at the NSA(naval support activity) located in LaMadalena, Italy. An island off the coast of Sardinia.
