SUBMARINE DESTROYER.

Greymouth Evening Star, 22 December 1902, Page 1

SUBMARINE DESTROYER.

A Russian Marvel.

A cable message published recently announced that Admiral Makaroy, of St. Petersburg, had evolved an invention which would deal a blow at submarine warfare, in the shape of an apparatus which gives warning of the approach of submarines by means of sound. Admiral Makaroy, by the way, is the author of the celebrated demonstration of the instability of the Victoria. Puller particulars of his latest apparatus are now to hand. It is called the “radioson,” and several successful experiments have been made at Cronstadt, By connecting the contrivance with the military telephone system, the whole system, the whole course of "Whitehead torpedoes off Cronstad was transmitted to an officer seated in a room in one of the Governmant offices in St Petersburg. Neither weather nor any oilier circumstances affect the accuracy of ascertaining the direction and speed of the object under observation, The radioson will detect the sub marine foe at night, in a storm, or in a fog, at any distance, as unerringly as in broad daylight or in a dead calm.

Not only can the wonderful discovery bo used for giving notice of the submarine's approach, but it can be employed for destructive warfare. By a simple modification it can bo mado to blow up the enemy either automatically or at the will of a person who may be miles away. A squadron served by the radioson is practically invulnerable from unseen foes, for, having been notified of their approach, it can either steam away or lie in wait and crush the enemy.

If the radioson does all that is claimed therefore, naval warfare of the future will be conducted on an entirely new scientific basis. Besides being a war invention, however, the radioson is also for use in time of peace. It can be sunk any distance into the earth, and then, owing to its extraordinary sensitiveness to the slightest sound, it will disclose the presence of springs of water. In this role the radioson recalls the acoustic device used by the Arabs in the Sahara, but it vastly exceeds in delicacy the primitive apparatus of the Eedouin.

No details have as yet been published, but it is known that the radioson consists essentially of a sounding apparatus, which transmits sound of a very low intensity, and enables the man at the receiver to trace both distance and direction of the object emitting the sound.