The Superkavitierender Unterwasserlaufkörper (lit. ''Supercavitating Underwater Running Body,'' formerly known as Barracuda) was a German close-range supercavitating torpedo

technology demonstrator A technology demonstration (or tech demo), also known as demonstrator model, is a prototype, rough example or otherwise incomplete version of a conceivable product or future system, put together as proof of concept with the primary purpose of sho ...

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is part of the unified (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Marine'' (German Navy) became the official ...

. The supercavitating torpedo for a "close-range defense of underwater targets" was presented to the public in 2005 as a prototype, but it never went into development and procurement. This form of torpedo solves the problem of high underwater drag by means of the

supercavitation Supercavitation is the phenomenon of a cavitation bubble reducing skin friction drag on a submerged object and enabling high speeds. Applications include torpedoes and propellers, but in theory, the technique could be extended to an entire un ...

effect, where underwater at a velocity of around a cavity filled with steam surrounds the moving object. Only the tip is in contact with the water, as such the frictional resistance is greatly reduced. The propulsion of such a torpedo can no longer be done by a propeller but requires a

rocket engine A rocket engine is a reaction engine, producing thrust in accordance with Newton's third law by ejecting reaction mass rearward, usually a high-speed Jet (fluid), jet of high-temperature gas produced by the combustion of rocket propellants stor ...

. Guidance is based on an

inertial measurement unit An inertial measurement unit (IMU) is an electronic device that measures and reports a body's specific force, angular rate, and sometimes the Orientation (geometry), orientation of the body, using a combination of accelerometers, gyroscopes, an ...

(IMU) and a

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...

antenna array integrated into the structure of the cavitation-forming conical tip located in the head section of the torpedo. Steering is performed by an autopilot that pivots this conical tip using

actuators An actuator is a component of a machine that produces force, torque, or displacement, when an electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic input is supplied to it in a system (called an actuating system). The effect is usually produced in a controlled way. ...

. If the torpedo rises or falls, the

water pressure Pressure (symbol: ''p'' or ''P'') is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. Gauge pressure (also spelled ''gage'' pressure)The preferred spelling varies by country and ev ...

acting on it also changes, and the cavitation bubble changes. When sinking, the water pressure increases and the bubble is compressed; when the torpedo rises, the pressure drops and the bubble gets bigger. To maintain the integrity of the bubble in response to increasing water pressure, the torpedo begins to pump a greater volume of gas. According to the manufacturer, the torpedo reaches a speed of over underwater. It is not dependent on the launch from

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

s but can dive into the water from the air and continue its supercavitation trip from there.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Superkavitierender Unterwasserlaufkorper Torpedoes of Germany Supercavitating torpedoes

See also

References