New Russian Nuclear Submarine: The K-329 Severodvinsk

Hey guys! You may have remembered me mentioning nuclear submarines and reactors in my
presentation on nuclear engineering.  Well, I found out that they're kind of a big deal when it come
to increasing a country's national defense system through a powerful navy.  Before we move on with the rest of the blog post, take a look at the diagram below to understand how it is possible to use nuclear power to spin a submarine turbine.




So basically, the idea is that the nuclear reactor on a submarine heats up water, turns it into steam, sends it through pipes to spin a turbine and propeller, and then gets sent through a condenser that turns the steam into water again.  This is a continuous process.  And the most efficient thing about this new kind of nuclear power is that it is silent, lasts the whole life of the ship, and requires no need to be refueled EVER.


Like I said in my presentation, the U.S. is in the process of designing and manufacturing a brand new class of submarines to replace the current Virginia-Class.  According to U.S. intelligence, we aren't the only ones interested in new subs.  Russia has added a new member to its impressive fleet of marine submarine and surface vessels: The K-329 Severodvinsk.  The ship is named after the Northern Federation Russian city "Severodvinsk" located in Europe on Dvina Bay.







This nuclear-powered innovation recently completed operational testing after being accepted into service during June of 2014.  According to the Russian Northern Fleet spokesman, Vadmin Serga, "Operations trials of the Severodvinsk submarine are over and the submarine is ready to fulfill its designated missions.  Its crew is currently completing measures necessary to put the submarine into service and to take to sea for planned combat training sessions".  (Take a look below to see what this bad boy can do).





The Severodvinsk utilizes many of the automation technologies that the Soviet Union had incorperated during the 70's and 80's.  This sub is categorized under the NATO-code name ALFA-class and consists of a titanium hull and a liquid-metal cooled reactor resulting in some of the worlds fastest and deepest diving subs ever made.


Structural Feats of the Severodvinsk:  Highly Automated Vessel with a nuclear reactor designed to last for the entire life of the ship

• Weight:  13,800 tons
• Length: 390 Feet
• Crew:  32 officers and 58 enlisted submariners
• Max Speed:  35-40 knots
• Max "silent" Speed:  20 knots
• Hull Type:  hybrid
• Sonar Type:  Irtysh-Amfora
• Torpedo Info:  8 total tubes (four being 650 mm tubes and the other four 533 mm tubes) located in the mid-section of the sub.  /it is believed that the Severodvinsk can carry 30 torpedoes 

Check out the video below to see the crew of the Severodvinsk perform a rescure hatch drill.

While the K-329 Severodvinsk is an impressive sub created by the Russians, the U.S. has reasons to believe that this is not the end for Russian marine innovation.  In fact, the Russians have put plans into effect for designing subs even better than the Severodvinsk.  But we have no need to fear because the United States seems to constantly be one step ahead of the Russians in this field.  Also, Americans are currently in the process of designing our own "Super Sub" to replace our current Virginia-Class attack sub.

Source:  "The National Interest"
Title: "Russia's Next Super Submarine Is Almost Ready for War"
Date:  March 27,2016
Author:  Dave Majumdar