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SSN is the United States Navy
United States Navy

The United States Navy is the navy of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy currently has approximately 331,682 personnel on active duty as of 31 December 2008 and 124,000 in the United States Navy Reserve....
 hull classification symbol
Hull classification symbol

The United States Navy uses hull classification symbols to identify the types of its ships. The Royal Navy and some European and Commonwealth navies use a somewhat analogous system of Pennant numbers....
 for a general-purpose fast attack submarine. The SS denotes a submarine
Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below water. It differs from a submersible, which has only limited underwater capability....
,. and N denotes nuclear power.

US Navy (USN) submarine fleet has been all-nuclear powered for over two decades. The bulk of the USN's SSN fleet has been the Los Angeles-class attack submarine
Los Angeles class submarine

The Los Angeles class, sometimes called the LA-class or the 688-class, is a class of Nuclear marine propulsion fast attack submarines that forms the backbone of the United States submarine fleet....
. Designed during the Cold War
Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state of conflict, tension and competition that existed between a number of world powers, including the United States, the Soviet Union, People's Republic of China, France, United Kingdom and those countries' respective allies from the mid-1940s to the early 1990s....
 the Los Angeles class boats' raison d'etre was to protect USN carrier battle groups and to hunt Soviet Navy
Soviet Navy

The Soviet Navy was the naval part of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have been instrumental in any perceived Warsaw Pact role in an all-out war with NATO when it would have to stop the naval convoys bringing reinforcements over the Atlantic to the Western European theatre....
 SSBNs before they could launch a first strike against the United States.

The first ever major combat action involving an SSN was during the 1982 Falklands War
Falklands War

The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands....
.






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SSN is the United States Navy
United States Navy

The United States Navy is the navy of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy currently has approximately 331,682 personnel on active duty as of 31 December 2008 and 124,000 in the United States Navy Reserve....
 hull classification symbol
Hull classification symbol

The United States Navy uses hull classification symbols to identify the types of its ships. The Royal Navy and some European and Commonwealth navies use a somewhat analogous system of Pennant numbers....
 for a general-purpose fast attack submarine. The SS denotes a submarine
Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below water. It differs from a submersible, which has only limited underwater capability....
,. and N denotes nuclear power.

History

The US Navy (USN) submarine fleet has been all-nuclear powered for over two decades. The bulk of the USN's SSN fleet has been the Los Angeles-class attack submarine
Los Angeles class submarine

The Los Angeles class, sometimes called the LA-class or the 688-class, is a class of Nuclear marine propulsion fast attack submarines that forms the backbone of the United States submarine fleet....
. Designed during the Cold War
Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state of conflict, tension and competition that existed between a number of world powers, including the United States, the Soviet Union, People's Republic of China, France, United Kingdom and those countries' respective allies from the mid-1940s to the early 1990s....
 the Los Angeles class boats' raison d'etre was to protect USN carrier battle groups and to hunt Soviet Navy
Soviet Navy

The Soviet Navy was the naval part of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have been instrumental in any perceived Warsaw Pact role in an all-out war with NATO when it would have to stop the naval convoys bringing reinforcements over the Atlantic to the Western European theatre....
 SSBNs before they could launch a first strike against the United States.

The first ever major combat action involving an SSN was during the 1982 Falklands War
Falklands War

The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands....
. An Argentinian cruiser, ARA General Belgrano
ARA General Belgrano

The ARA General Belgrano was an Argentine Navy cruiser sunk in a controversial incident during the Falklands War with the loss of 323 lives....
 was sunk by torpedoes fired by the Royal Navy fleet submarine . After that incident, the Argentinian Navy was effectively confined to port.

Since the end of the Cold War, SSNs have evolved into multi-mission submarines. Their roles include submarine launched cruise missile
Cruise missile

A cruise missile is a guided missile missile that carries an explosive payload and uses a lifting wing and a propulsion system, usually a jet engine, to allow sustained flight; it is essentially a flying bomb....
 platforms, intelligence gathering platforms, insertion and exfiltration of special forces
Special forces

Special Forces , also known as, Special Operation Forces is a generic term for highly-trained military teams/units that conduct specialized Military operation such as reconnaissance, unconventional warfare, and counter-terrorism actions....
 teams in addition to traditional hunter-killer SSN roles.

The advantages of an SSN over a conventionally powered SSK
Hull classification symbol

The United States Navy uses hull classification symbols to identify the types of its ships. The Royal Navy and some European and Commonwealth navies use a somewhat analogous system of Pennant numbers....
 are much longer endurance (limited more by the crew than the boat), higher speed, and extremely quiet operation. Unlike most SSKs, SSNs do not have to surface periodically for air, which would compromise their stealth. These considerations are less significant for modern conventional submarines: LOX
Liquid oxygen

Liquid oxygen is a form of the element oxygen. It has a pale blue color and is strongly paramagnetism. Liquid oxygen has a density of 1.141 g/cm? and is moderately cryogenics ...
 and Stirling engine
Stirling engine

A Stirling engine is a device that converts heat energy into mechanical power by alternately compressing and expanding a fixed quantity of air or other gas at different temperatures....
 powered vessels can cruise underwater for up to a week and are significantly quieter than nuclear submarines, since they do not need to run the powerful (and noisy) pumps associated with the cooling circuits of pressurized water reactors.

The main disadvantages of an SSN are the technological challenges and huge expense of building, refuelling and maintaining a nuclear power
Nuclear power

Nuclear power is any nuclear technology designed to extract usable energy from atomic nucleus via controlled nuclear reactions. The only method in use today is through nuclear fission, though other methods might one day include nuclear fusion and radioactive decay ....
 plant. Nuclear submarines are also a political problem, as some countries refuse to accept nuclear-powered vessels as a matter of policy. Furthermore, decommissioned
Decommissioning

Decommissioning is a general term for a formal process to remove something from active status. Some specific instances include:* Decommissioned highway...
 nuclear submarines require costly dismantling and long term storage of the radioactive waste
Radioactive waste

Radioactive wastes are waste types containing radioactive decay chemical elements that do not have a practical purpose. They are usually the products of nuclear processes, such as nuclear fission....
.

The following navies currently operate SSNs:
  • United States Navy
    United States Navy

    The United States Navy is the navy of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy currently has approximately 331,682 personnel on active duty as of 31 December 2008 and 124,000 in the United States Navy Reserve....
  • Royal Navy
    Royal Navy

    The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British Armed Forces . From the mid-18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early 1940s....
  • Russian Navy
    Russian Navy

    The Russian Navy or VMF is the Navy of the Russian Armed Forces. The international designation of Russian naval vessels is "RFS" - "Russian Federation Ship"....
  • The Chinese Navy: People's Liberation Army Navy
    People's Liberation Army Navy

    The People's Liberation Army Navy is the navy branch of the People's Liberation Army , the military of the People's Republic of China. Until the early 1990s, the navy performed a subordinate role to the People's Liberation Army Ground Force....
  • The French Navy: Marine Nationale


Active and future SSN classes


United States Navy SSN classes (in service)


  • Los Angeles (SSN-688)
    Los Angeles class submarine

    The Los Angeles class, sometimes called the LA-class or the 688-class, is a class of Nuclear marine propulsion fast attack submarines that forms the backbone of the United States submarine fleet....
     (some have been retired)
  • Seawolf (SSN-21)
    Seawolf class submarine

    The Seawolf class attack submarine was the intended successor to the Los Angeles class submarine, ordered at the end of the Cold War in 1989....
  • Virginia (SSN-774)
    Virginia class submarine

    The Virginia class of attack submarines are U.S. subs designed for a broad spectrum of Blue-water navy and littoral missions. They were designed as a cheaper alternative to the Cold War era Seawolf class submarine attack submarines, and are slated to replace aging Los Angeles class submarine, seventeen of which have already been deco...


Royal Navy SSN classes (in service)

Known as "Fleet submarines" in the RN
  • - First in class, HMS Astute, launched in July 2007


Russian Navy SSN classes (in service)


  • Victor III class submarine
    Victor class submarine

    The Victor class The Soviet Union discovered through its spy network that Americans could easily track Victor II-class subs and subsequently halted production of that type to design the Victor III class....
  • Sierra I and Sierra II class submarines
    Sierra class submarine

    The Sierra class or Project 945 nuclear submarine was the Soviet Union's successor class to the partly successful Alfa class submarine. The Sierra class has two light and strong titanium hulls which enables the class to dive to greater depths, reduce the level of radiated noise levels and increase resistance to torpedo attacks....
  • Akula class submarine
    Akula class submarine

    Project 971 ????-? , is a Nuclear marine propulsion attack submarine first deployed by the Soviet Navy in 1986. The class is sometimes erroneously called the "Bars" class, after one of its members....
  • Graney class submarine
    Graney class submarine

    Project 885 Yasen is a new Russian nuclear multipurpose attack submarine class.The submarine is based on the Akula class submarine and Alfa class submarines and is projected to replace Russia's older Soviet-era class attack submarines....
     - in development


Marine Nationale SSN classes (in service)

  • - in development


People's Liberation Army Navy SSN classes (in service)


  • Han class submarine (Type 091)
  • Type 093 submarine


Retired SSN classes


Royal Navy

  • HMS Dreadnought (S101
    HMS Dreadnought (S101)

    The seventh HMS Dreadnought was the United Kingdom's first nuclear-powered submarine, built by Vickers Armstrongs at Barrow-in-Furness....
     (unique)
  • Valiant class submarine
    Valiant class submarine

    The Valiant class was the first fully British nuclear fleet submarine, as the first nuclear submarine, , used an American nuclear reactor. There were only two boats of the class, the first boat, Valiant being commissioned just three years after Dreadnought in 1966, while Warspite commissioned the following year....
  • Churchill class submarine
    Churchill class submarine

    The three Churchill-class submarines were nuclear powered fleet submarines which served with the Royal Navy from the 1970s until the early 1990s....
     (of which HMS Conqueror was one)


Russian/Soviet Navy

  • November class
  • Mike class
    Soviet submarine K-278 Komsomolets

    K-278 Komsomolets was the only Project 685 ??????? nuclear powered submarine attack submarine of the Soviet Navy.Project 685 was tasked with developing an advanced submarine that could carry a mix of torpedoes and cruise missiles with conventional or nuclear warheads....
     - the ill-fated K-278 Komsomolets
  • Alfa class
    Alfa class submarine

    The Soviet Union/Russian Navy Project 705 was a submarine class of hunter/killer nuclear reactor vessels . The class is also known by the List of NATO reporting names for hunter-killer and experimental submarines of Alfa....


United States Navy

(unique) (unique)
  • Skate (SSN-578)
    Skate class submarine

    The Skate-class submarines were the United States Navy's first production run of nuclear powered submarines. They were an evolution of the Tang class submarine in everything but their propulsion plants, which were based on the experimental ....
  • Skipjack (SSN-585)
    Skipjack class submarine

    The Skipjack class of United States Navy nuclear attack submarine was the replacement for the Skate class submarine. A new design from the keel up, they were the first submarines to use a nuclear reactor in an teardrop hull: a round hull with a single shaft....
  • USS Triton (SSN-586)
    USS Triton (SSRN-586)

    USS Triton , a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered radar picket submarine, was the first vessel to execute a submerged circumnavigation of the Earth, accomplishing this during her shakedown cruise in early 1960....
     (unique)
  • USS Halibut (SSN-587)
    USS Halibut (SSGN-587)

    USS Halibut , a unique guided missile submarine turned special operations platform, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the halibut....
  • USS Thresher/Permit (SSN-594)
(unique)
  • Sturgeon (SSN-637)
    Sturgeon class submarine

    The Sturgeon-class attack submarine were the "work horses" of the submarine attack fleet throughout much of the Cold War. They were phased out in the 1990s and early 21st century, as their successors, the Los Angeles class submarine, followed by the Seawolf class submarine and Virginia class submarine class boats, entered service....
(unique) (unique)

See also

  • SS
    Submarine

    A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below water. It differs from a submersible, which has only limited underwater capability....
  • SSB/SSBN
    Ballistic missile submarine

    A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles . Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident missile....
  • SSG
  • SSGN
  • List of submarine classes
    List of submarine classes

    This is a list of submarine classes, sorted by country. The navy of 46 list of sovereign states operate submarines....
  • List of submarine classes of the Royal Navy
    List of submarine classes of the Royal Navy

    This is a list of submarine classes of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. Dates of construction given....
  • List of Soviet and Russian submarine classes
    List of Soviet and Russian submarine classes

    Submarines in the Soviet Navy were developed by numbered "projects," which were sometimes but not always given names. During theCold War, NATO nations referred to these classes by NATO reporting names, based on intelligence data, which did not always correspond perfectly with the projects....
  • List of United States submarine classes