Brit D-cell torpedo in icepack-bottom probe A British robot submarine has penetrated under the Western Antarctic ice shelves to a distance of 60km, plunging to depths greater than 1000m. The "Autosub", built by boffins in Southampton, was powered by tens of thousands of ordinary D-cell batteries during its forays beneath the ice. Autosub comes from the UK's National …
That's assuming that they're proper D-Cell Batteries, and not just AA batteries in a D shell casing like companies like En*cough*gizer have been guilty of. Otherwise, there's a lot of air trapped in the casing providing too much bouyancy, and not enough juice for the size casing it should be providing.
A while ago I read an article that claimed global warming could lead to a rise of sea levels of 6m over the next century. I thought it was shite at the time, but if we are looking at a quarter of a milimeter a year wouldn't a rise of 6m take 24,000 years? Actually it would take longer at that rate because the oceans surface would get larger as the level rose.
There's at least one expert bullshitting us here.
Okay, I know that there are probably a thousand factors here, but why "ordinary alkaline"?
Yes, you can mass-produce them and get them cheaply (although the local One-Stop might not be sufficient for 5000 of the buggers), but why not a more space-efficient power source? Surely just one humungous lead-acid or other technology battery could provide a lot more power, be rechargeable and survive the temperatures/pressures? If not, then it might even have been worth looking at making sure the battery didn't *need* to survive those temperatures/pressures etc. by providing a small heater or enclosure. I'd like to know what the justification is for alkaline technology packed into a space-inefficient, difficult to combine cylindrical shape that doesn't provide much oomph anyway.
It seems that the problem must have already been solved elsewhere - space flight, or marine batteries, or some other well-known venue. It just seems incredibly odd to be putting a load of Energiser's into a sub that you want to run out more than once.
I take it the 'boffins' haven't heard of rechargeable batteries then.
No, don't start with the "you'd need more of them than alkelines so the sub would be heavier...yadda, yadda, yadda." This should have been figured out early on in the design.
Or was it sponsored by "Duracell"?
Paris, as I imagine she likes her submersible devices to be rechargeable!!
That sub has taken some battering. Did anyone else notice the huge crack on the nose? From about 1:50 in video the nose comes into close view. And on the port side of that nose there seems to be a hole, and then a large crack running away from it. Shows it must be a tough cookie if it survived that.
Regarding the D Cell vs. Rechargeable issue, how about reading the comments thread from the El. Reg. Article dated 8th Jan this year http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/01/08/dad_battery_challenge_droid_sub/comments/ - The cells will be at or near 0 C for their mission duration, so conventional D Cells work better (apparently).
One also does have to credit the designers of the device with some intelligence - I think they might just have thought about using rechargeable cells and then discounted them for valid reasons.
The company I worked for worked with Southhampton and Autosub- google ASV Geosub for info. The battery packs were definately not the AAs-in-a-D-casing.
And for someone who asked last time how it'd come to the surface if it ran out of power, there's a load of small stones ("chuckies") in a bucket. Power fails, a hatch opens, chuckies fall out, autosub becomes positively bouyant and floats to the surface. Or straight into some ice.
Glad to see it got back safely from this mission- it's an awesome bit of tech!
Reporter: So what powers this then?
Scientist: (musn't mention the secret mutant hamsters), err batteries
Reporter: What ordinary D cells ?
Scientist: Yep
Reporter: Must be a lot of them
Scientist: bloody thousands!
Now if only the problems with the Large Hamster Collider can be solved we will have an unlimited source of energy.
Why did you think the government was stalling on building new power stations?
They are just waiting for the baby hamster to hatch in the spring.
Lithium batteries don't work as well under pressure and when very cold (though people like Tritech are working on useful submersible ones). Plus they're bloody expensive. Lead Acids give off Hydrogen- not something you want in a sealed container at depth. An NiCds are just plain crap.
The torpedo shape was chosen as it's the most hydrodynamically efficient shape when the AUV is moving forwards. Internally it's not cylindrical at all- there are frames and interconnecting strips and such.
And the Autosub is rated to like 6000m of depth. Problems with pressure can't be solved by a "small enclosure". And a heater for sorting temperature problems out isn't gonig to work either- you'd vastly reduce your battery life and probably not be able to get them up to anywhere near the temperature range where they work most efficiently.
Martin,
Are you "involved" in D Notice type, Binary Research in ITerative Energy Cells....with ITs Astute Fearless Flawless Technologies/Stealth Knowledge Transfers?
And the LHC doesn't have problems surely, just nobbles? Crikey, that last sentence was very Edmund BlackAdderish.
Now that would be a Real Hoot and a Wheeze..... The Black Adder Team doing Secret Government AIResearch and Ear Bashing the Opposition with PrePositions and Advanced Steganographic Soliloquy ...... a Sort of V for Vendetta on Speed for AIMagical Mystery Turing Trips and MetaDataMined Games....... and when also Licensed to Thrill, what would be able to stop them Establishing NeuReal Rules and Regulations for BroadBandCasting EMPulsating Spectrum.
Ps Love the Yellow Submarine.
"A British robot submarine has penetrated under the Western Antarctic ice shelves to a distance of 60km, plunging to depths greater than 1000m."
60Km is 60,000m.
1000m is how deep it went so what is 60 Km the measurement of?
Paris, becaus she knows all about deep penetration.
"The LHC collides particles at 99.9999991% of the speed of light."
Note that it is hesitant on the type of particles - but if we assume they are pairs of little fury particles called "bubble and squeak" then the enegy of a colliding pair of hamsters at this speed would generate enough energy to heat 1.2 olympic swimming pools of Bovril (official units)
This is only a prototype of the the Relatavistic Heavy Ferret Collider being built in a secret Yorkshire location.
Maplin are now doing what they call Hybrid rechargeables. That are supposed to be OK with operating at low temperatures up to -10C Probably not up to this application though.
Seem to be OK in an outdoor thingy I have. Even during our recent cold spell but possibly the deep ocean under an ice shelf is a wee bit colder than my suburban southern English garden.
More expensive than NiCads too.
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