How internal waves could lead to wreck American and Indonesian submarines?

TL;DR

This paper explores how giant internal waves might have contributed to submarine disasters, analyzing historical incidents and proposing a possible link between internal wave phenomena and submarine accidents.

Contribution

It introduces a hypothesis that large-amplitude internal solitary waves could be a factor in submarine accidents, supported by analysis of wave parameters and historical incident reconstructions.

Findings

Internal waves can reach large amplitudes and speeds.

Reconstructed scenarios suggest internal waves may impact submarine safety.

Potential link between internal wave dynamics and submarine disasters.

Abstract

The article reflects the author's point of view on the disasters that occurred with American atomic submarines Thresher and Scorpion in 1960th and Indonesian diesel submarine Nanggala-420 in April 2021. A possible role of giant internal waves in such tragic events is discussed. Parameters of large-amplitude internal solitary waves, their shapes and speeds of propagation are presented. The author's reconstruction of the disasters is given.