I'm in the interesting position of agreeing with Micky (had to happen one day
) The Toledo and the Memphis were probably in the area, as close to the Kursk as they could judge safe to be, listening for the accoustic details of the Skhval, however, what they landed up recording was a terrible accident caused by the torpedo design. It's not just the Russians who've had issues with that torpedo fuel...IIRC us Brits had a boat severely damaged with the loss of at least twelve men when the Hydrogen Peroxide propelled torpedo exploded. The reason? A Hot running torpedo, which is quite likely the cause on the Kursk...the torpedo exploded, causing a severe fire in the Torpedo room which then cooked off the rest of the torpedoes, the explosion would have smashed every torpedo tube door off and probably made a horrible mess of the bulkhead doors for several compartments...hence the sad, prolonged fate of the survivors at the stern.
Here's some more quotes from Wiki which give better technical looks at what I've said:
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Originally Posted by Wiki on HMS Sidon
The direct cause of the accident was determined to have been malfunctioning of the "Fancy" torpedo, and that torpedo program was terminated.
A torpedo being readied for the morning test shot had begun a "hot-run" — its engine had started while it was still inside the submarine and was over-speeding, creating very high pressures in its fuel system. The "Fancy" torpedo used high test peroxide (HTP) as an oxidizer. When an oxidizer line burst, HTP sprayed onto the copper fittings inside the torpedo, decomposing into oxygen and steam. The torpedo's warhead did not detonate, but its hull burst violently, rupturing the torpedo tube and causing the flooding that destroyed the boat. |
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Originally Posted by Wiki on HTP
In the 1940s and 1950s, the Walter turbine used hydrogen peroxide for use in submarines while submerged; it was found to be too noisy and maintenance-demanding compared to the conventional diesel-electric power system. Some torpedoes used hydrogen peroxide as oxidizer or propellant, but this use has been discontinued by most navies for safety reasons. Hydrogen peroxide leaks were blamed for the sinkings of HMS Sidon and the Russian submarine Kursk. It was discovered, for example, by the Japanese Navy in torpedo trials, that the concentration of H2O2 in right-angle bends in HTP pipework can often lead to explosions in submarines and torpedoes. Hydrogen peroxide is still used on Soyuz for driving gas turbines to power turbopumps, however. SAAB Underwater Systems is manufacturing the Torpedo 2000. This torpedo is used by the Swedish navy. The torpedo is powered by a piston engine, propelled by HTP as an oxidizer and parafine as a fuel in a bi propellant system. |