... it ran out days ago (assuming it didn't implode):
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The 96 hours thing comes from the Oceangate website factsheet. Do you think they ACTUALLY tested that by putting five people in it for 96 hours?
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Whatever went wrong with the sub (electrical failure, implosion) probably compromised the oxygen supply or made it redundant.
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The 96 hours assumes they breathed evenly. Do you think they weren't panicking and trashing and screaming and hyperventilating?
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Oxygen is only one part of the problem, the other is dangerous CO2 buildup. These subs have CO2 removal systems that need replacing every 10 hours or so. They would be inhaling dangerous levels of CO2 long before they ran out of oxygen.
They're mega, mega dead.
I'm still trying to figure out why they used carbon fibre. Isn't it used in situations where you're desperately trying to save mass, like high-end bicycles, and rockets like Rocket Lab's Electron? What's the point of that in a deep submersible where even a thick steel hull is still naturally bouyant due to the air inside?
I think its literally becuase its cheaper. Like most submersibles use very specialized grades of titanium and often cost several tens of millions of dollars to build. Like on paper carbon-fiber has the same strength and corrosion resistance as titanium but is also brittle and prone to manufacturing defects.
Interesting. So basically while a not-to-spec titanium hull would start making noise under pressure and thus warn the passengers, this thing just had a microcrack buildup from the constant pressure cycles and shattered like a microchip wafer.
I had not idea carbon fibre was so finicky but hey I'm not the guy trusting my life with it.
I'm assuming "cheapest option"
Perhaps it lowered transit costs for bringing the sub here and there above water
It certainly lowered the costs of bringing it back this time
bazinga material