Did anyone see the recent report on BBC news about Dolphin submersibles? Apparently they've been around for quite a while now -since the 90s apparently - but it's the first I'd heard of them. The clip the BBC showed looked stunning - plus it reminded me of a certain 'something'! - so I dug up a few things about them which I thought I'd share.
Firstly take a look at
these clips of the thing in action (warning: turn down your speakers beforehand, unless you like the Pixies fairly loud!)
They were built by a company in California (where else?) called
Innespace. According to their specs, and from what I've heard elsewhere, the craft can only go underwater for short periods, to a depth of about 3 or 4 feet (10 is the maximum), because the engine needs air. So, to call it a "submersible" is perhaps a tad misleading? However, they go on to say that "Deeper dives may be possible in the future with the use of supplementary compressed air." Basically, unlike conventional submarines it doesn't use ballast to go underwater, it uses it's forward momentum.
There are also some clips on youtube (search for innespace), with mention of some controversy over who actually invented it.
Anyway, who cares, just look at that Dolphin roll!
