What advantage do nuclear submarines have over conventional submarines?

Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over “conventional” (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion, being completely independent of air, frees the submarine from the need to surface frequently, as is necessary for conventional submarines.

How are conventional submarines powered?

Most submarines today are conventionally powered (diesel-electric) and tend to be smaller and cheaper to maintain. Nuclear-powered submarines run off of steam generated by an onboard nuclear reactor that turns the turbines.

How does nuclear power work on a submarine?

Nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers are powered by onboard nuclear reactors. Atoms in the nuclear reactor split, which releases energy as heat. This heat is used to create high-pressured steam. The steam turns propulsion turbines that provide the power to turn the propeller.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a nuclear submarine?

The main advantage of the nuclear submarine is that the nuclear submarine is not required to be refueled and brought to the surface again and most of the nuclear submarines have diesel generators as the alternate power source that is used in case of the fault in the nuclear reactor.

What is a nuclear powered ship?

The nuclear powered ship is the surface ship or the submarine, It receives its propulsion energy from the nuclear power plant on board, These ships have been widely used in the military since the 1950s as the submarines and the aircraft carriers.

What happens to nuclear vessels when they are taken out of service?

When a nuclear vessel is taken out of service, the federal government disposes of and monitors its radioactive parts. Some of the submarines and aircraft carriers in the United States fleet are powered by nuclear reactors.