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Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

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Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#501

Post by varjag »

bandyaboot wrote: post #465
bagels wrote: post #356

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tradition itself is probably the worst rationale for an engineering solution. Maybe it's the right way for other reasons?

I could see that as being the simplest/least failure prone way to design a closing mechanism that doesn’t need to resist the immense pressure to maintain integrity, but rather is held more forcefully to the hull as the pressure increases. Certainly you could design something like that that bolts from the inside instead, but perhaps the problem with that is that they cant exactly carry along with them various tools an…

If you pass out, how do they get you out?

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#502

Post by saiya-jin »

profsummergig wrote: post #415
spoonfeeder006 wrote: post #344

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just like this persian who was given a lot of money to go on the Titanic's maiden voyage, but gave the money to charity instead. He came to the USA in 1912 and spoke out against the racism here https://www.huffpost.com/entry/abdul-baha_b_1419099 > Throughout his U.S. visit he swept aside the social protocol of segregation by insisting that everywhere he spoke be open to people of all races. Not the biggest crowd plea…

The Baha'i religion is pure free thought. Truly admirable. Pity it didn't catch on (and probably never will).

You may end up surprised, its a religion which handles meeting modern world and its values much better than any other major religion (maybe apart from Buddhism, if you consider it religion per se).

Sad to see its cradle, Persia, to go full hatred on it. Interestingly, they found their safe haven in Israel. I hope main reason wasn't to just insult arch enemy, but rather simple tolerance.

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#503

Post by gizmo »

varjag wrote: post #501
bandyaboot wrote: post #465

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I could see that as being the simplest/least failure prone way to design a closing mechanism that doesn’t need to resist the immense pressure to maintain integrity, but rather is held more forcefully to the hull as the pressure increases. Certainly you could design something like that that bolts from the inside instead, but perhaps the problem with that is that they cant exactly carry along with them various tools an…

If you pass out, how do they get you out?

Two hatches? One opens from the inside one opens from the outside? I'm sure there are other solutions.

But as somebody else already pointed out: even if you get out in the middle of the ocean you're in real trouble, which makes the hatch issue kind of moot.

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#504

Post by erik_seaberg »

stickfigure wrote: post #125
kotaKat wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://youtu.be/29co_Hksk6o?t=157 Having been linked this elsewhere in the thread I don't quite like the fact that they're so brazen that they bought internal lighting from Camping World and drive it with a Logitech USB gamepad and using half-ass construction piping as a ballast. Or the fact that they scrubbed a Titanic launch for the media due to weather (presenting from some kind of briefing room where they presen…

I think you have unreasonable expectations. Off-the-shelf components may be more reliable than custom developed products (especially since you can afford a backup or two). Also, with respect to emergency ballast - cheapness is a virtue. You're supposed to drop it in an emergency, and hesitating because "I don't want to lose my expensive weights" could kill you. This is a consideration for recreational scuba too, inst…

Does a submersible like this only drop ballast weight in an emergency, or every time they’re ready to go home? I know submarines tend to use diving planes and pneumatic ballast tanks (flood with water, or inject air to push water out), but I don’t know if that’s an option down at 400 atm.

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#505

Post by jskrablin »

zarzavat wrote: post #490
hkchad wrote: post #442

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tourist Cave diver here, kicking up a little dirt happens on almost every dive, we train to deal with complete blackout scenarios, while sharing air, in restrictions but that rarely happens. Typical incidents relate to people doing a dive over their experience level or getting lost and running out of gas. Some cave systems are truly huge in scale and navigation can be difficult if you do a huge dive in one go. Person…

Honest question, why do it? What’s the attraction of cave diving? Are underwater caves exciting enough that it’s worth the risk? Or is the risk itself the main thrill? Or is your perception that it’s not that risky? I can understand the attraction of e.g. wingsuits, because the idea of flying like a bird is compelling, even if I would never risk my own life to do it. Although there’s definitely more than a few wingsu…

Adrenaline is a powerful drug. And there's also a 100% focus (or very close to it), something that's really hard to achieve otherwise. Keeping yourself fit counts as well. I don't cave dive but I do ride MX which is also considered a risky sport. I'd say you'll hear similar answers from everyone dealing with risky sports/activities.

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#506

Post by slazaro »

xoxxala wrote: post #451
WalterBright wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In college, a popular showoff trick was to set an empty beer can on the floor. Then balance on it with one foot. If your balance was good and well centered, the can would not collapse. Then, for extra credit, slowly reach down and just tap the side of the can with a finger tip. The can would instantly crush to a disk. Extra karma points for crushing it into a perfect circle, rather than an oval. It would collapse so…

Bill Hammond, the Engineer Guy on youtube, has a video on the design and engineering of the aluminum can with a brief clip of someone standing on a can (around the 7-8 minute mark). https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hUhisi2FBuw

If you enjoyed this video, he's posted four new videos in the last month, and they're very good as well!

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#508

Post by rsaxvc »

kristofferR wrote: post #419
rsaxvc wrote: post #232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, that sounds a lot better. From: https://www.forbes.com/sites/katherinehamilton/2023/06/19/he... "Pogue also shows the vessel uses construction pipes as ballast." I'm having trouble finding the interview video, but dropping ballast involves the crew and passengers rocking the vessel to drop the pipes off the side.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29co_Hksk6o

From Australia: "The uploader has not made this video available in your country"

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#509

Post by lb1lf »

malshe wrote: post #233
lb1lf wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's how you bring several kW of power down to an ROV. An umbilical cable, copper conductors and fiber optics inside steel wire sheath. The weight of the thing makes it impossible to attach it directly to the ROV - It would be unmaneuverable - so instead they bring it down to a TMS (Tether Management System) - basically a cage where the steel umbilical terminates and a spool of lightweight tether cable, 100m or so,…

This is great info! Can you please point me to any write up that explains this in more details?

I went to sleep, time zones being what they are, but see that user jacquesm posted a link to a most impressive rabbit hole of engineering porn.

As an aside, one of the first field jobs I attended after graduating was commissioning some equipment fitted onto the R/V Knorr, the very ship which was used for finding the Titanic.

For a Titanic buff, that was a great experience - doubly so when the project manager at the Woods Hole end found out that I had more than a passing interest in the wreck, and during lunch one day suggested we go see if we could find Bob, as he believed him to be on the premises.

Bob, of course, turned out to be Robert Ballard, who turned out to be an incredibly gentle and patient guy who answered each and every question I had like it was the first time he had it posed to him, despite probably having had them thousands of times before...

Re: Titanic tourist submersible goes missing with search under way

#510

Post by wnkrshm »

civilitty wrote: post #205
selimthegrim wrote: post #187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did they find out what it was?

> At 30,000 ft. a sharp crack rang through the ship, shaking it violently. The water pressure outside was more than 6 tons per sqare inch., and even a slight fracture in the hull would have meant certain death. It proved to be only an outer Plexiglas windowpane which had splintered under the pressure. The inner hull remained watertight. "A pretty hairy, experience," admitted Walsh. https://web.archive.org/web/2007020…

Don Walsh has been on the Deep Sea Podcast a few times, I can recommend it for anyone interested.
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