Themes

Conflict and Change

• Introduction

• In Focus: 1900

• In Focus: World War One

• In Focus: Interwar

  • Surface Fleet

  • Submarines

  • Royal Marines

  • Fleet Air Arm

• In Focus: World War Two

• In Focus: Post War Conflict

• In Focus: Cold War Climate

• In Focus: Falklands and Beyond

• Special Exhibition: Falklands 25

Learning

• How To: Understand Propaganda

• Propaganda Image Galleries

• Education Project: Sea With Your Own Eyes

Improvements in submarine design

Article Highlights

• Introduction

• HMS X1

• ASDIC

ASDIC

The interwar period also saw the development of anti-submarine tactics. The design of torpedoes improved, along with the production of high powered, underwater depth charges.

The main development was Asdic, later known as sonar. The Allied Submarine Detection Investigation Committee (ASDIC) lent its acronym to this invention. Asdic was the first effective underwater detection system. The Navy initially worked on the concept during World War One and Britain had built active systems by the close of the war. Submarines began to be fitted with the device in the mid 1920s.

Asdic located submerged submarines by using sound waves. The search vessel sent out high-frequency sound beams which bounced back when they hit a submarine. The time that passed before receiving an echo showed the range of the submarine. The pitch of the echo revealed if the submarine was approaching or moving away.

The Admiralty was convinced that this invention meant the end for the submarine as a significant threat.

Related External Links

• Royal Navy Submarine Museum