TEST PROGRAM AND PROCEDURES 



The anchor was tested to verify the designs of the hydrostatic 

 seals, the launch vehicle, and the propellant charge. In addition, 

 electrical and gas systems were checked at extremely low temperatures 

 to ensure proper functioning at extreme ocean depths. The seals were 

 checked by testing in a pressure vessel and the launch vehicle and 

 propellant by conducting on-land firings of the anchor at the Pacific 

 Missile Range. 



The gun tube, safe/arm device, and power pack are all water-tight 

 containers designed to maintain their structural and water seal inte- 

 grity to a water depth of 20,000 feet. The safe/arm device and the 

 power pack were tested independently to a simulated ocean depth of 

 20,000 feet, while the gun tube was tested with the safe/arm device to 

 a simulated water depth of only 11,000 feet because of pressure vessel 

 restrictions. In all these tests the procedure was to build the pres- 

 sure up to its maximum value, hold it for a few minutes, and then 

 gradually release the pressure. The various apparatii were then dis- 

 assembled and inspected for structural deformation and signs of water 

 leaks . 



The propellant system is designed to give the anchor projectile 

 (fluke and piston) a velocity of 300 to 440 feet per second. To achieve 

 these velocities with a short gun barrel, very high acceleration is 

 required. Consequently, both the launch vehicle and the projectile 

 experience extreme stress conditions from inertial forces during 

 firing. By conducting test firings with the anchor on land it was 

 possible to examine both the ballistic performance of the gun system 

 and the structural integrity of the launch vehicle. It was not feasi- 

 ble to use the actual projectile during land testing, therefore, a mass 

 of steel was substituted for the projectile. The anchor was assembled 

 and hung with a fluke-down vertical orientation from the wood cross- 

 beam of a large "sawhorse-like" frame. The anchor was then loaded, 

 armed, and fired. In all, seven tests were performed with charge 

 weights ranging from 2.25 pounds to 3.50 pounds. Various instrumenta- 

 tion was used for the tests including high speed movies, videotape, 

 electronic pressure transducer, electronic accelerometers , and mechani- 

 cal pressure-reading devices. The type of data recorded for each test 

 is summarized in Table No. 1. 



TEST RESULTS 



In all cases the hydrostatic pressure testing caused no structural 

 deformation, and no leakage occurred. Testing of electrical and gase- 

 ous systems at the near-freezing temperature to be encountered at 

 extreme ocean depths verified component functioning at this extreme. 



Land-testing involved reassembling the anchor after each test. 

 The anchor was assembled without difficulty. A procedure where the 

 anchor was held vertical and a procedure where it was laid horizontal 



