A 'submersible' is a type of
underwater vessel with limited mobility which is typically transported to its area of operation by a surface vessel or large submarine. Apart from size, the technical difference between a 'submersible' and a 'submarine' is that submersibles are not totally autonomous. They may rely on a support facility or vessel for charging of batteries, high pressure air, high pressure oxygen replenishment, or all of these.
A submersible vessel has greater mobility, using
propeller screws or
pump-jets, than
submersible chambers (diving chambers or
diving bells), which are suspended from a
cable and
winch operated from the
diving support vessel.
Operation
Submersibles differ from
submarines in that submersibles typically have shorter range, and operate underwater almost exclusively, having little function at the surface. Many submersibles operate on a "tether" or "umbilical", remaining connected to a
tender (a submarine, surface vessel or platform).
ROVs
Small unmanned submersibles called "marine remotely operated vehicles" or
MROVs are widely used today to work in water too deep or too dangerous for divers.
Remotely operated vehicles (
ROVs) repair offshore
petroleum platforms and attach cables to sunken ships to hoist them. Such remotely operated vehicles are attached by a tether (a thick cable providing power and communications) to control center on a ship. Operators on the ship see video images sent back from the robot and may control its propellers and manipulator arm. The wreck of the ''
Titanic'' was explored by such a vehicle, as well as by a manned vessel.
Among the most famous submersibles is the deep-submergence research vessel
DSV Alvin.
See also
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U-Boat
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Midget submarine
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Submarine
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Submersible bridge
External links
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Deep Flight Submersibles
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Information and pictures of Sport Submersibles
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U-Boat Worx - Personal Recreational Submersibles
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Personal Submersibles