Hunting submarines with magnets
A new way to detect even the quietest boats
SUBMARINES rely on stealth to do their jobs, whether that is sinking enemy ships or hiding nuclear-tipped missiles beneath the ocean. The traditional way of hunting them is with sonar. Modern sonar is extremely sensitive. But modern submarines are very quiet, and neither side has gained a definitive upper hand.
There are other options. Submarine-spotting aircraft carry “magnetic anomaly detectors” (MAD) which pick up disturbances in the Earth’s magnetic field caused by a submarine’s metal hull. Those disturbances are tiny, which means MAD is only useful at ranges of a few hundred metres.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline "Follow the trail"
Science & technology November 12th 2016
- A bet about a cherished theory of physics may soon pay out
- A new fossil find in Brazil rewrites the history of the dinosaurs
- How to solve the lunar dust problem
- How to enrol your dog in a cancer-drug trial
- Hunting submarines with magnets
- Earth’s plants are countering some of the effects of climate change
More from Science & technology
Many mental-health conditions have bodily triggers
Psychiatrists are at long last starting to connect the dots
Climate change is slowing Earth’s rotation
This simplifies things for the world’s timekeepers
Memorable images make time pass more slowly
The effect could give our brains longer to process information