The prototype of the "Silent Nemo" (Silent Nemo) has been in evidence since yesterday at the Joint Expeditionary Base in Little Creek, Virginia. Engineers and officers are testing the capabilities of an 5 meter underwater drone, around 45 kilos, designed to look and swim like tuna.
The robot can be controlled remotely with a joystick even if it has the ability to swim completely independently. His movement, identical to that of his living counterpart, pushes him through the waves in absolute silence.
Silent Nemo was developed by the Office of Naval Research and is being tested by the Chief of Naval Operation's Rapid Innovation Cell, a group formed by young Navy officers and the Marine Corps with the task of employing emerging technologies to service of the military. The same group, so to speak, that continues to develop 3D printers and glasses for augmented reality.
The idea of deploying robots that imitate the biological traits of living creatures is not new, but until recently it was considered absolute science fiction. According to the US Navy, the "Silent Nemo" (although the battle name will be the far more threatening "GhostSwimmer") could enter service within the next year. The idea is precisely to decode what nature has already done after thousands of years of evolution. Today there are underwater drones, but their shape is easily recognizable. The natural movement of a fish, on the other hand, does not attract attention. The Pentagon plans one day to have an entire fleet of robot fish to patrol ports and swim in enemy waters. Submarine robots could also be used to search for mines or to inspect the hull of a ship.
Dolphins, Sea Lions and Orcas: natural killers at the service of the military
The "Combat Dolphin Program" which foresees the training of dolphins for war purposes in the Sevastopol aquarium, in Crimea, was incorporated into the Russian Navy last March.
The Ukrainian defense ministry, 13 last February, announced the closure of the program due to lack of funds.
The annexation of the peninsula by Moscow has upset the previous directives of Kiev. Indeed, the Russian defense ministry has the necessary funds and know-how to increase the capacity of Ukrainian dolphins, equipped with obsolete equipment.
Moscow has been training and using sea lions for decades to protect its coasts from enemy enemies.
The Sevastopol aquarium is one of the two centers in the world for fighting dolphin training. The other is managed by the US Navy, in San Diego, in the Marine Mammal Program.
According to the official websites of the Ukrainian navy, the dolphin training aquarium for the Soviet navy dates back to the 1960. They have been trained both to detect military equipment at the bottom of the sea and to attack sub-enemies.
In the 1980, training included anti-sabotage and rescue operations.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the entire dolphin training section and its specialists switched to the Ukrainian navy. They were then used for civil tasks (such as the treatment of some childhood neurological diseases), in order to keep the unit intact.
In the 2011, the Ukrainian defense ministry has restarted the specific formation of dolphins for combat.
If the annexation with the Russian federation had taken place a few weeks later, the mammals would have already been sold to the aquariums of the planet by March. Moscow would therefore have missed the opportunity to absorb dolphins in its ranks, considering the excellence of the structure and its uniqueness, finding an empty aquarium. Only a mere coincidence has given the Russians the ability to increase their "animal military" component in an area not yet able to defend themselves against Western naval forces.
Marine Mammal Program
The US Navy uses five teams of marine mammals, each with a specific mission profile. Each team, consisting of a man and an animal, is known in the jargon with the acronym MK followed by a number. The MK 4,7 and 8 teams use only dolphins. The MK 5 team uses sea lions while the MK 6 uses both mammals. Teams can be deployed with up to 72 hours notice worldwide.
Dolphins have been used in Vietnam for ten years, and in the 2003 in the Persian Gulf.
Franco Iacch
