About
the USS Providence SSN-719
USS Providence
(SSN-719), a 688 or Los Angeles-class
submarine, is the fifth ship of the United States Navy to be named for the city
of Providence, Rhode Island. The contract
to build her was awarded to the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics
Corporation in Groton, Connecticut on 16 April 1979 and her keel was laid down
on 14 October 1982. She was launched on
4 August 1984 sponsored by Mrs. William F. Smith, and commissioned on 27 July
1985, with Captain E. Morrow in command.
SSN-719
slides down the building ways into the
Thames
River in Groton, CT on 14 October 1984.
USS Providence
is met by the tugboat C-Tractor at the entrance
to
the Thames River in New London, CT.
USS Providence is
362 feet in length, 33 feet across
(beam), and displaces 6,082 tonnes (5,986 long tons)
surfaced and 6,927 tonnes (6,818 long tons)
submerged. It is powered by a S6G
Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) capable of propelling the submarine at greater
than 20 knots submerged and is capable of diving to depths in excess of 800
feet.
Armament
includes four 21-inch torpedo tubes capable of launching any combination of
Mk48 ADCAP torpedoes, Tomahawk land attack missile block 3 SLCM with a range of
1,700 nautical miles, Harpoon anti–surface ship missile with a range of 70
nautical miles, and Mk67 mobile and Mk60 captor mines. Providence
was also the first Los Angeles class submarine to be equipped with the Tomahawk
Missile Vertical Launch System (VLS) with twelve additional vertical launch
tubes installed in the bow.
A
Tomahawk cruise missile is launched from USS
Providence
during
the opening days of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.
The
typical crew of USS Providence consists
of 12 officers and 98 enlisted personnel.
The submarine is capable of distilling its own fresh water from sea
water by use of stills and reverse osmosis equipment and can create breathable
air by use of an oxygen generator, which through electrolysis splits water
molecules into its constituent Hydrogen and Oxygen atoms, dumping the excess
hydrogen overboard. Atmosphere control
equipment – Carbon Monoxide/Hydrogen (CO/H2) Burners and Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
Scrubbers help maintain the internal atmosphere. Food really become the only limiting factor
on how long the Providence can remain
at sea.
Providence
has been deployed numerous times to almost every region of the globe, including
the North Atlantic, the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian (Persian) Gulf, the
Pacific Ocean, and under the Arctic Ice Cap.
Operation
Iraqi Freedom – April 2003
The
submarine tender USS Emory S. Land AS-39
moored at Soudha Bay, Crete.
Moored
alongside the Land are (from left to
right) USS Boise SSN-764,
USS Newport News SSN-750,
USS San Juan SSN-751
and
USS Providence SSN-719, the Red Sea
Wolf Pack
USS Providence SSN-719
has been awarded many prestigious unit awards, including multiple Armed Forces
Expeditionary Medals, Navy Expeditionary Medals, Meritorious Unit
Commendations, Naval Unit Commendations, the Global War on Terrorism
Expeditionary and Service Medals, and the prominent Battle E on several
occasions.
As
of 2017, Providence is based out of US Naval Submarine Base New London,
Groton, CT.
How
a Nuclear Submarine Works:
A
typical naval nuclear-powered propulsion plant.
A
naval nuclear propulsion plant is basically just a high-tech steam engine
which, instead of coal or wood burning to heat water, uses a uranium core to
heat water into high-pressure steam which in turn spins both a turbo generator
(TG) to provide power and a main engine (ME) to produce propulsion.
Water
in the Primary Loop (shown in red in the above diagram) is circulated through
the Reactor Core where it picks up heat from the fission of the uranium
fuel. That heat is transferred by
conduction to the water of the Secondary Loop (shown in blue and gray) inside
the Steam Generator. At no time do the
Primary Coolant or Secondary Coolant ever mix.
The Pressurizer maintains the Primary Coolant at a nominal pressure to
prevent it from flashing to steam and exposing the core elements.
The
steam generated in the Steam Generator enters the Engine Room. Some of the steam is used to spin the Turbo
Generators, which produce all the electrical power used by the submarine and to
recharge the submarine’s batteries. The
rest of the steam is used to spin the Main Engine turbines. After either turbine, the steam passes
through the Main Condensers, which use sea water to cool the steam back into
water, which in turn is pumped back to the Steam Generators and reused.
The
ME’s connect to the Reduction Gears, which lower the torque from high RPM’s to
low RPM’s. The Reduction Gear is
connected to the main propeller shaft through a Clutch, which can disconnect
the shaft from the gears and allow the shaft to be connected to the battery
powered Emergency Propulsion Motor (EPM) in an emergency, such as a reactor
scram.
On
its way through the aft hull of the submarine, the shaft passes through the
Thrust Block. This in turn is connected
directly to the interior of the submarine hull and is the point where the
actual thrust of the screw is transferred to the hull, producing forward
momentum, so the screw does not actually press against the hull itself, causing
friction, noise and wear.
The
submarine Battery, a DC storage battery, provides emergency power in case of
loss of electrical power through a reactor casualty or loss of the Turbo
Generators. Power from the Battery can
be used to directly power the EPM and, through the DC to AC Motor Generators,
the reactor Coolant Pumps. The Battery
is meant as a temporary solution until the submarine’s Emergency Diesel
Generator can be started, which required the submarine to be at periscope depth
or on the surface.
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= - = - = - = - = - = - = -
US
Naval Vessels named Providence
through History:
Five
vessels of the United States Navy have been named Providence, after the city of Providence, Rhode Island.
The 12-Gun Continental Sloop Providence.
~
The first Providence was a 12-gun
sloop originally named Katy. Katy
was purchased by Rhode Island on 31 October 1775. Late in November, Katy sailed for
Philadelphia carrying seamen enlisted by Commodore Esek Hopkins in New England
for continental service. Arriving 3
December 1775, Katy was immediately
taken into Continental service and renamed Providence. On 10 May 1776, John Paul Jones assumed
command of Providence with temporary
rank of Captain. The British seized
Narragansett Bay in December 1776 and Providence
with other American vessels there retired up the Providence River. In February 1777, under LT Jonathan Pitcher, Providence ran the British
blockade. She was destroyed by her crew,
with other American vessels in the Peneobscot River
in Maine, 14 August 1779, to prevent her falling into the hands of the British.
The 28-Gun Frigate Providence.
~
The second Providence, a 28-gun
frigate, built by Silvester Bowes at Providence, RI, by order of the
Continental Congress, was launched in May 1776.
After being blockaded in the Providence River for more than a year, the
new frigate, under the command of Captain Abraham Whipple, ran the British
blockade on the night of 30 April 1778.
Part of Commodore Whipple’s Squadron, on 23 November 1779 she sailed
from Nantasket Roads, first cruising eastward of Bermuda, arriving at
Charleston, SC on 23 December 1779 to defend the city. Providence,
with the other ships of the Squadron, remained for the defense of Charleston
and was one of the ships taken by the British when that city fell on 12 May
1780. She subsequently served in the
British Navy as HMS Providence until
sold in March 1783.
The Continental Army Gundalow Providence.
~
The third Providence was a gundalow
built at Skenesboro, NY, by the Continental Army for Brigadier-General Benedict
Arnold's fleet on Lake Champlain in 1776.
This Providence fought in the
Battle of Valcour Island on 11 October 1776.
After the battle, their ammunition nearly exhausted, the Americans
retreated towards Crown Point, with the enemy in pursuit and the next morning,
12 October, Providence, being badly
damaged, was sunk at Schuyler's Island by her own crew to prevent capture.
During
the year 1776 there were three vessels named Providence all serving the Continental Forces at the same time.
The Guided Missile Cruiser USS Providence CLG-6.
~
The fourth Providence (CL-82) was laid down 27 July 1943 by
Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, MA, launched 28 December 1944 and commissioned on
15 May 1945. Reclassified CLG-6 on 23 May 1957, Providence commenced conversion to a
guided missile light cruiser at Boston in June 1957. During conversion, Providence was provided with modern missiles, command ship
facilities and a nuclear weapons capability.
She was recommissioned 17 September 1959. This Providence
served with distinction during the Vietnam Conflict before being decommissioned
on 31 August 1973.
The Fast-Attack Submarine USS Providence SSN-719.
~
The fifth and current Providence (SSN-719) is a Los Angeles-class
nuclear-powered attack submarine launched on 4 August 1984 and commissioned on
27 July 1985. She is still in active
service with the US Atlantic Fleet as of 2017.
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