I raised this question before. But supposedly the red capped position, before sail in that photo, is the escape pod. In that case, why do you need hump after sail. For shaping reason?
09III/09IV (093/094) Nuclear Submarine Thread
- Thread starter SinoSoldier
- Start date
by78
General
Most detailed view of the small smooth hump yet... I don't see a hatch or opening. I wonder what the enlarged section houses.
Another thought: since multiple 093s have humps of varying sizes, it could be possible that whatever it's installed there, the PLAN had been able to shrink down and make more space-efficient through successive iterations. Or alternatively, multiple designs of the same equipment – by 'same' I mean equipment serving the same purpose – could be installed under the various humps for comparison purposes.
Who knows...
(1706 x 960)
(1706 x 960)
(1706 x 960)
(1706 x 960)
Another thought: since multiple 093s have humps of varying sizes, it could be possible that whatever it's installed there, the PLAN had been able to shrink down and make more space-efficient through successive iterations. Or alternatively, multiple designs of the same equipment – by 'same' I mean equipment serving the same purpose – could be installed under the various humps for comparison purposes.
Who knows...
(1706 x 960)
(1706 x 960)
(1706 x 960)
(1706 x 960)
Last edited:
Hyperwarp
Captain
No VLS, no sign of an escape hatch on the hump. Maybe the hump is the there to give extra space and/or material to dissipate noise?
But for that, the reactor would have to be in that location. Compared to the 091 and 093, 093A is very smooth in appearance.
Hyperwarp
Captain
That would be good. That would make the 093A at least half a generation ahead of the original 093. Like J-10A to J-10B/C jump.
From what I have read at Keypublishing forum was that, one of the hardest things when it to noise reduction in an SSN/SSBN were components related to the reactor.
Edit:
In the Astute, the Reactor section is right behind the sail -
For lack of a better idea, a new reactor design is probably the leading hypothesis. However, it should be noted that the Astute has a similar beam to the 093 and the LA and Virginia classes have even smaller beams than the 093, so a large reactor resulting in a hump doesn't seem to be a perfect fit as an explanation. Also, the Astute has a very long sail and is also positioned further aft compared to the sail on the 093.
The last few pictures gives me the impression that the sub has its ballast tanks on top rather than on the sides, with the hump simply there to smooth out the hydrodynamic flow behind the sail. This change in the ship's architecture is likely due to the 094, where the newer 093 might be sharing sections with. The 094 also appears to have ballast tanks on top behind the sail.
The original 093 gives me the impression that the ballast tanks are on the side.
The original 093 gives me the impression that the ballast tanks are on the side.