Capabilities
The NR-1 performed underwater search and recovery, oceanographic research missions and installation and maintenance of underwater equipment to a depth of almost half a nautical mile. Its features included extending bottoming wheels, three viewing ports, exterior lighting, television and still cameras for color photographic studies, an object recovery claw, a manipulator that could be fitted with various gripping and cutting tools and a work basket that could be used in conjunction with the manipulator to deposit or recover items in the sea. Surface vision was provided by a television periscope permanently installed on a fixed mast its her sail area.
NR-1 had sophisticated electronics, computers and sonar systems that aided in navigation, communications, and object location and identification. It could maneuver or hold a steady position on or close to the seabed or underwater ridges, detect and identify objects at a considerable distance, and lift objects off the ocean floor.
NR-1 was equipped with two electric-motor driven propellers and its maneuverability was enhanced by four ducted thrusters, two in the front and two in the rear. The vehicle had diving planes mounted on the sail, and a conventional rudder.
NR-1 could travel submerged at approximately four knots for long periods, limited only by consumable supplies — primarily food. It could study and map the ocean bottom, including temperature, currents, and other information for military, commercial and scientific uses. Its nuclear propulsion provided independence from surface support ships and essentially unlimited endurance.
NR-1 was generally towed to and from remote mission locations by an accompanying surface tender, which was also capable of conducting research in conjunction with the submarine. NR-1's last mother ship was the MV Carolyn Chouest, which provided towing, communications, berthing and direct mission support for all NR-1 operations. An extremely versatile platform, it was an indispensable member of the NR-1 deep submergence team. The NR-1 command was manned with thirty-five Navy personnel and ten civilian contractor personnel. NR-1 carried as many as thirteen persons (crew and specialists) at one time, including three of the four assigned officers. (The Operations Officer rode on the MV Carolyn Chouest). All personnel that crewed NR-1 were nuclear-trained and specifically screened and interviewed by the Director, Navy Nuclear Propulsion Program, Admiral Kirkland H. Donald.
Read more about this topic: American Submarine NR-1
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