Submarine technology is constantly evolving.
Future advancements will allow submarines of tomorrow to be far more efficient and effective warships. While designers are looking at ways to improve current models, entirely new concepts are also being developed.
One of these concepts is a miniature submarine which is remotely operated and equipped with sensors, such as the periscope and sonar system. This miniature submarine will feed information back to the 'mothership', which can remain a safe distance away.
Other ideas include:
- ways to accommodate for a greater variety of weapons;
- sonar systems that allow the submarine to be further away from its target; and
- air-independent propulsion, which will allow submarines to stay submerged for weeks at a time.
Improvements to hull strength are also being researched in order to develop a design that can withstand a direct hit from today's conventional weapons.
In April 2007 the
Kokoda Foundation released a major research paper entitled
Australia's Future Underwater Operations and System Requirements. A summary of the paper and an order form is available
here.
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