Chinese scientists announce results of submarine detector test in East Sea

Scientists from Shanghai Jiaotong University say their new submarine detector, which can track even the quietest submarines, has been tested on the seabed in the South China Sea.

The submarine detector developed by scientists from Shanghai Jiaotong University (China) is the size of a pickup truck.

Photo: SCMP screenshot

The new detector, about the size of a pickup truck, can pick up weak electromagnetic waves generated by a rotating submarine propeller nearly 20 kilometers away, according to the South China Morning Post ( SCMP ) today, September 20.

By analyzing these low-frequency signals, scientists from Shanghai Jiaotong University claim they have the ability to locate and track military targets. They published their new findings in a Chinese journal last month.

The detection range is about 10 times larger than any previous research, meaning the new technology could give China an advantage in the increasingly fierce underwater arms race, according to SCMP .

Such a distance was previously considered impossible because detectable electromagnetic signals emitted by submarines do not travel that far in seawater. But those electromagnetic signals can be detected from further away by monitoring the seafloor, a technique not previously used to detect submarines, according to SCMP .

Explaining the sudden appearance of a Chinese submarine in the Taiwan Strait

According to publicly available records, the furthest a submarine has previously been detected was more than 2.5 kilometers.

In the study, Professor Jiang Weikang of Shanghai Jiaotong University wrote that the new technological approach has shown great potential in sea trials and has the potential to increase the detection range of low-frequency electromagnetic signals to “over 50 km”. This distance could be on par with the range at which modern torpedoes can destroy their targets.

Chinese scientists announced the above research in the context of new submarines running more and more quietly, making it increasingly difficult to detect this type of vessel using long-used methods, according to SCMP .

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/gioi-khoa-hoc-trung-quoc-cong-bo-ket-qua-thu-may-do-tau-ngam-o-bien-dong-185240920152931768.htm