I'"cbruury 20, 1915 
LAND AND WATER 
THE TORPEDO 
By ■• A.M.I.C.E." 
THE torpedo is to-da}' one of the principal arms 
of naval warfare, and is carried in practically 
e\-ery type of warship from the submarine to the 
largest battleship. Although this has been the 
case for several years it can safely be said that 
the introduction of the submarine greatly increased the 
importance of the torpedo as an offensive arm. 
The modern torpedo may be looked upon as a small 
submarine vessel without conning tower and periscope, 
the inrushing water causes the appearance of flames and 
smoke so as to indicate the spot where the torpedo has struck. 
The compressed air chamber consists of steel walls 
having a thickness of about a quarter of an inch, and has a 
capacity of about 12 cubic feet. It is capable of withstanding 
a pressure of about 2,000 lb. to the square inch, although 
the actual working pressure is 1,470 lb. per square inch. 
This pressure is reduced by means of a reducing valve to 
515 lb. per square inch, at which pressure it supplies power 
Depth Regulator 
RuoocR 
SArtTV Pin 
Striiicr 
Charge 
Detonator 
CoMPRCssCD Air 
Chamber 
Balance 
Chamber 
EncineRoou 
Propelleoj 
Two Shafts 
One Inside The Otwer 
iTCERiNO RuoDtP 
DlACRAMMATlC SkETCH OT A ToRPEDO. 
capable of travelling at a very high speed under water, and 
carrying a charge of gun-cotton which explodes on striking 
an object. 
The torpedo was invented by Commander Luppis, an 
officer in the Austrian Navy, who sold his patent to Whitehead, 
an English engineer engaged in the well-known naval works 
in Fiume. Practically every navy throughout the world 
usL-s the Whitehead torpedo e.xcept that of Germany, which 
employs the Schwartskopf type. In France some torpedoes 
are made by Creusot, and in America by the Bliss-Leavitt 
Company. There is, however, very little essential difference 
between the various torpedoes. 
A torpedo looks very much like a steel cigar, and varies in 
length from 14 feet to 19 feet and in diameter from 16 inches 
to 21 inches. There are six main parts in a torpedo, and, 
beginning from the nose, they are as follows : {a) the head, 
(6) the chamber containing the compressed air, (c) the balance 
chamber, (d) the engine room, {e) the buoyancy chamber, and 
(/) the tail end. 
In the nose it carries a small thin steel rod which ends 
in the detonator. When the torpedo hits an object the steel 
pin is forced violently inwards and fires the detonating 
mixture, consisting generally of fulminate of mercury, which 
in turn fires the main charge, consisting of about 200 lb. of 
wet gun-cotton. 
In order that this great charge is not fired accidentally 
a small safety pin is provided in the nose, and until this is 
withdrawn the detonator cannot operate. Other safety 
appliances are also provided, such as a small safety fan, which 
is spun round by the water, and must revolve a certain number 
of times, representing a certain distance travelled, before the 
steel rod is free to move. It is, of course, important that the 
crew should see that these safety devices are removed before 
firing the torpedo, and it is, of course, a very easy thing, 
especially in the excitement of an engagement, to forget to 
withdraw the safety pin. In such a case the torpedo would 
be quite harmless when striking an object. Thus several 
torpedoes were found during the Russo-Japanese War 
which had not exploded, though they had struck the 
steel netting protecting battleships against torpedo attacks. 
For practising torpedo firing in times of peace the torpedo 
is fitted with a dummy head made of thin copper and filled 
with water, so that the weight is equal to tJ)at of the " war- 
head." When the head is destroyed by striking an obstacle 
to the engine. If the air were carried direct from the 
reservoir to the engine the energy stored would be expended 
in a very short time, while the speed of the engine would 
rapidly decrease. 
The balance chamber contains the mechanism for 
regulating the depth under water at which the torpedo is 
adjusted to run. In the engine room is placed the compressed 
air engine for driving the propellers. The engine is generally 
of the three-cylinder type and has an indicated horse-power 
of about 60. In the American Bliss-Leavitt torpedo a 
compressed air turbine of the Curtis type is employed. 
The buoyancy chamber provides the buoyancy of the 
torpedo, so tliat when a torpedo has exploded its charge it 
can come to the surface and be picked out of the water. It 
also contains the gyroscope, which is an instrument for 
automatically correcting the course of the torpedo for any 
deflection which it may experience. 
As the torpedo leaves the tube a bolt in the latter catches 
a trigger on the former, and this releases a spring which 
starts the gyroscope. In case the torpedo swerves in the 
water the position of the gyroscope relative to the torpedo 
alters, thus putting into operation compressed air valves 
which direct the steering 1 udder in such a way as to correct 
the deviation. A torpedo, in fact, rushes through the water 
along a zigzag path about two feet broad. The great 
accuracy of modern torpedo firing is largely due to the intro- 
duction of the gyroscope. The tail section carries the two 
screw propellers and the horizontal and vertical rudders, 
each worked by a small auxiliary air engine supplied with 
compressed air from the main reservoir, but entirely inde- 
pendent of the main engine. 
The auxiliary motor controls the horizontal rudder 
automatically by means of the balancing mechanism, and 
thus ensures a constant depth of immersion, while the motor 
working the vertical rudder is controlled by the gyroscope. 
The latest type 18-inch Whitehead torpedo contains a charge 
of about 200 lb. of wet gun-cotton, and maintains a speed of 
43 knots for 1,000 yards, 32 knots for 3,000 yards, and 28 knots 
for 4,000 yards. The 21-inch Whitehead torpedo carries a 
charge of 300 lb. of gun-cotton, weighs nearly 2,000 lb., and 
has an effective range of some 7,000 yards. A curve is given 
showing the range and speed. The great increase in range 
of the torpedo during the last few years is chiefly due to the 
{Continued on page 21)8) 
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