The U.S. Naval Research Division owns the most unusual ship in the world. This is an unusual oceanographic equipment in the form of a floating Flip platform. This platform was created at the Marine Research Laboratory in Oceanography at the University of California. Flip cannot be fully attributed to ships, but all researchers live and work on it in the open ocean for quite long periods of time. We can say that this is a huge specialized beacon that has amazing property- turn over (Flip - literally translated as "turn over"). 
The length of the ship is 108 meters. There are small narrow compartments along the entire length and a large hollow compartment at the end. While the long tanks are filled with air, the Flip is in a horizontal position, and when they are filled with sea water, it levels off like a float above the sea surface, which gives it great stability during heavy storms. When to Retake horizontal position, the water is lowered and the ship can be transported to a new location. 
The internal parts are arranged for two positions of the ship. For example, cabins have two doors, making it easy to move to a new position. Toilets and some elements in the kitchen are duplicated here. The duration of the entire flip process is 28 minutes, which is quite fast for such a huge ship. 
It is known from history that this ship-shifter was built 50 years ago, in 1962, by scientists Fred Fisher and Fred Spiess, who needed a quieter and more stable vessel to study the behavior of sound waves under water. 
The purpose of Flip was to study the height of the waves, acoustic signals, water temperature and its density. Everything is thought out in order to carry out these studies here: in order not to interfere acoustic instruments, the ship has no engines and needs to be constantly towed to the research site where it will be anchored. In an upright position, the ship becomes extremely stable and quiet.
They can roll over, navigate through ferocious storms, and carry oil platforms. We present you a selection of eight of the most remarkable specimens that will change your idea of \u200b\u200bmarine vessels.
RP-FLIP
Scientists Fred Fisher and Fred Spies created the RP FLIP in 1962 as a vessel for studying sound waves underwater. This ship, which is the property of the US Navy, has one notable feature: it can roll over perpendicular to the surface of the sea and sink its leading edge under the water, leaving only the rear part above the water.
This makes the FLIP also an ideal tool for investigating wave heights and water temperatures. To flip the FLIP, the crew fills 700 tons sea water tanks located in a long, narrow stern. When the study is completed, the crew replaces the water in the tanks compressed air, causing the vessel to return to a horizontal position.
vanguard
Built in 2012, Vanguard is the world's largest cargo ship. This massive vessel is 70% larger than any analogues and, unlike them, has an absolutely flat deck. This means that all 275 meters of length and 70 meters of width can be fully used for loading.
The ship is also semi-submersible - using watertight ballast tanks, the crew can lower the deck below the surface of the water. This is useful when the Vanguard needs to capture floating payloads such as the capsized Costa Concordia.
Sea Shadow
Lockheed Martin built the "Sea Shadow" during cold war as a secret test ship for the US Navy. The ship was in the waters off Southern California from 1985 to 1993 in order to study the possibility of creating a "stealth" ship using the stealth technology of the F-117 Nighthawk aircraft.
The ship was supposed to be less affected by waves and more stable even in extreme storms. In addition, its unusual body of large flat panels set at 45 degrees to each other, as well as a ferrite coating that absorbs radar waves, make the Sea Shadow really quite unobtrusive to radar.
Severodvinsk
Entered into service in June 2014, this Russian multipurpose nuclear submarine is equipped with fourth-generation supersonic cruise missiles and homing deep-sea torpedoes. It is the lead ship of the Yasen project of the Russian Navy and the first submarine in which torpedo tubes are located behind the central post compartment.
The 119-meter Severodvinsk can dive to a depth of 600 meters and travel at speeds up to 30 knots (55 km/h), outpacing most torpedoes. The submarine is equipped with an almost silent nuclear reactor, low-noise propeller and hull coated sound-absorbing material to avoid detection.
Alvin (DSV-2)
The DSV-2 debuted in 1964 as the world's first manned deep-sea submersible and has been continually improved in design ever since. He has made over 4,600 dives, including a mission to study the wreck of the Titanic.
The robust steel hull, 7 meters long and 3.6 meters wide, was replaced with a lightweight titanium one, which made it possible to reach a depth of almost 6400 meters. Inside there is enough space for three people, and outside the bathyscaphe is equipped with two mechanical manipulators.
Chikyu
With its ability to scan the seabed up to 7 km deep, the Japanese research vessel Chikyu is important tool scientists in understanding global geological changes. The ship monitors seismogenic areas of the earth's crust in order to provide early warning of future earthquakes.
It can also be used to drill into the earth's crust and explore its mantle. The vessel is equipped with a sophisticated on-board computer that takes into account navigation system data, wind speed, waves and undercurrents, controlling the engines based on these readings.
wave glider
Small California company Liquid Robotics has developed an unmanned vessel designed to collect data on environment in conditions too dangerous for humans. Wave Glider consists of a body with solar panels surfboard-like design and belt-driven hydrofoils - this design makes the Wave Glider the ideal boat for working in extreme conditions ocean.
The drone can be equipped with 70 different sensors for collecting data and mapping tools, sending information online to the "cloud" storage.
Sea Orbiter
Existing only as a prototype so far, SeaOrbiter will be the world's first non-stop reconnaissance vessel, allowing scientists to spend months at sea in search of new life forms. The SeaOrbiter will be powered by wind and solar energy, and the 60m long, 1 tonne hull will be made from recycled aluminum known as Sealium, which is suitable for the harsh conditions of the deep sea.
A research laboratory and several small submersibles for individual research will be placed inside. Construction of SeaOrbiter is scheduled for the end of the year.
Ramform Titan
Seismic survey company Petroleum Geo-Services placed a preliminary order for the construction of two W-class Ramform vessels with the Japanese company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The vessels are representatives of the new fifth generation of the Ramform series. The cost of each of them is estimated at $250 million.
Safety, efficiency and performance are key features of the new Ramform Titan equipped with 24 offshore seismic streamers, which was recently presented at the MHI shipyard in Nagasaki, Japan. The new ship will be the most powerful and efficient marine seismic survey vessel ever built. It is also the widest (at the waterline) ship in the world. When designing the vessel, safety and performance were the main considerations. This is the first of four ships to be built in Japan.
Proteus (Proteus)
The futuristic ship Proteus looks like something out of a sci-fi movie, a catamaran resembling a water strider. The cabin for the crew and passengers is mounted on four giant metal "spider legs", which, in turn, are mounted on two pontoons, providing reliable buoyancy. Proteus is about 30 meters long and 15 meters wide. The unusual vessel is driven by two diesel engines with a capacity of 355 horsepower each. The displacement of the Proteus is 12 tons, the maximum payload mass is two tons.
Its cabin (with four berths), in the parking lot, can descend into the water, separate and make independent navigation for a short distance. This increases the flexibility of the new apparatus. The cabin can approach the pier, leaving its paws hundreds of meters from the shore. And, most importantly, the cabin can be changed, turning one Proteus into a multifunctional device. Proteus is aptly named after the Greek sea god, who is said to be able to assume various forms.
The US Naval Research Unit owns some rather strange oceanographic equipment, in particular, the floating platform Flip, created in the laboratory of marine research and oceanography at the University of California. The Flip is not exactly a ship, although researchers live and work on it for quite long periods of exploration in the open ocean. In fact, this is a huge specialized buoy, and the most unusual thing about it is that it really flips over (Flip - literally translated as "turn over") ... Let's find out more about this floating miracle.
The Flip is 108 meters long, with small narrow compartments running almost the entire length and a large hollow compartment at the end. When these long tanks are simply filled with air, the Flip is in a horizontal position, but when they are filled with sea water, it levels off like a float above the sea surface, which makes it very stable during heavy storms. When the water is released, the vessel returns to a horizontal position and can be transported to a new location.
Inside, everything is arranged in such a way that when the coup is over, everything adjusts to the new position. The cabins have two doors, making it easy to move to a new position. Toilets and some elements in the kitchen are duplicated here. The whole flip process takes 28 minutes, which is pretty fast for such a giant.
This shifter was built 50 years ago, in 1962, by scientists Fred Fisher and Fred Spiess, who needed a quieter and more stable vessel to study the behavior of sound waves underwater.
Flip was designed to study wave height, acoustic signals, water temperature and density. In order not to interfere with acoustic instruments, the ship has no engines and must be constantly towed to the research site, where it will be anchored. In an upright position, the ship becomes extremely stable and quiet.
Already during the very first tests, a lot of important data was collected on the circulation of water, the formation of storm waves and the movement of seismic waves, the temperature interaction between the ocean and the atmosphere, the sounds of marine animals and many other important areas. 
1 Viking Lady
The Viking Lady, an offshore service vessel, is powered by internal combustion engines and a gas-fired fuel cell battery. The ship's battery system transmits power to Electrical engine, is the first commercial vessel in the world to use this technology.
According to DNV, the technology used on board the vessel reduces CO2 emissions into the atmosphere, as well as reducing harmful emissions of nitrogen oxide into the atmosphere, which are comparable in terms of emissions to 22,000 cars a year.
Last week, Det Norske Veritas completed tests on the new fuel system on board the ship, as a result research project went out to new level when tests are carried out directly on the ship.
Viking Lady is likely to work for the French fuel giant Total and will be involved in fuel extraction on the Norwegian continental shelf. 
2. Concrete ships
Norwegian engineer Nikolai Fegner, in 1917 created the first self-propelled marine vessel made of reinforced concrete. He named it "Namsenfijord". The Americans built a similar cargo ship Faith a year later. By the way, during the years of World War II, 24 reinforced concrete ships and 80 barges were built in the United States. 
In 1975 for storage liquefied gas reinforced concrete tanker "Andjuna Sakti" with a deadweight of 60,000 tons was built 
During the Second World War, the Americans built 24 reinforced concrete ships.
The ships were built in Tampa, Florida starting in July 1943, each taking less than a month to build. The ships were named after the great scientists of those times.
Two ships were sunk during the battles of Normandy, nine are used as breakwaters at Kiptopeke, Virginia, two have been converted to moorings at Yaquina Bay, Newport, Oregon, and seven more have been converted into a giant breakwater on the Powell River in Canada. 
3. Proteus
The futuristic ship Proteus looks like something out of a sci-fi movie, a catamaran resembling a water strider. The cabin for the crew and passengers is mounted on four giant metal "spider legs", which, in turn, are mounted on two pontoons, providing reliable buoyancy. Proteus is about 30 meters long and 15 meters wide. 
The unusual vessel is driven by two diesel engines with a capacity of 355 horsepower each. The displacement of the Proteus is 12 tons, the maximum payload mass is two tons. Its cabin (with four berths), in the parking lot, can descend into the water, separate and make independent navigation for a short distance. This increases the flexibility of the new apparatus. The cabin can approach the pier, leaving its paws hundreds of meters from the shore. And, most importantly, the cabin can be changed, turning one Proteus into a multifunctional device. Proteus is aptly named after the Greek sea god, who is said to be able to assume various forms. 
Developed in complete secrecy, the project was first presented to the public on the water in San Francisco Bay by the Californian company Marine Advanced Reasearch. Its author and ship's captain, Hugo Conti, has long been planning to create a vessel of unusual design. "It is fundamentally new model he says. - It moves very differently than a normal ship - much faster due to its low weight. In essence, "Proteus" seems to be dancing on the waves. According to the inventor, "Proteus" is extremely light, very maneuverable and has a cruising range of more than 8 thousand kilometers. There is no rudder on it: the vessel is controlled by propellers mounted on each float. Conti has patented his invention and expects to start selling it in the near future.
Proteus, the first full size WAM-V (Modular Wave Adapting Vessel), is an exceptional vessel that features modularity, light weight, wide range applications, low sea influence, convenient operation, low noise and low fuel consumption. 
As usual:
Post at the request of a fairly large number of users, thanks for the idea
Minelayer project "632"
In the middle of the last century, the sailors of the Soviet Union ordered a special ship - an underwater minelayer. TsKB-18 was assigned to work on the project, and in 1956 work began on the design of an underwater mine layer.
In connection with heavy load TsKB-18 on the design of missile submarines, the project of a submarine, with about 40 percent readiness, is transferred to the TsKB-16 team.
Based on the requirements of the project, the submarine had to have a diesel engine and accommodate special weapons of the order of 90 mines "PLT-6", specially designed for submarines, there should also have been the possibility of quickly converting the minelayer into a transport submarine for transporting people and transporting oil, fuel and water. The storage of special weapons was carried out using revolutionary technology, the location of mines between compartments.
By the end of 1958, the project of the 632 underwater minelayer was adopted by the State Commission, but the project was not included in the seven-year shipbuilding plan, which began in December 1958, but the submarine of the 648 project was included. All work after the approval of the seven-year plan for the mine layer project was stopped, and eventually stopped. Of the main reasons for not implementing the project, the high cost batteries and the fact that the submarine of the project "648" could perform all the tasks solved by the project "632" and in addition could perform other tasks of underwater transportation.
1 - compartment for placing a torpedo; 2 - compartment for installing batteries; 3 - personnel compartment; 4 - CPU; 5 - compartment for placing mine weapons; 6 - racks for storing mines;
7 - diesel compartment; 8 - pipe for accepting and discharging mines; 9 - electric machine compartment; 10 - aft compartment
Main characteristics:
- displacement of 3.2 thousand tons;
- length 85 meters;
- width 10 meters;
- autonomy of navigation 80 days;
— the crew of the submarine 90 people;
- average speed 15 knots;
- the duration of the voyage is one month;
Armament:
- about 90 mines;
- mine devices 4 units;
- 4 TA caliber 533 mm;
4 TA caliber 400 mm.
Transportation:
- people up to 100 people;
- ammunition, cargo, food up to 120 tons;
- fuel up to 130 tons.
Submersible missile boat "Dolphin"
The idea of creating such a unique project was submitted by the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Nikita Khrushchev. During his stay in Sevastopol and inspection of the naval base, Khrushchev noticed missile boats and submarines standing nearby and expressed the idea of creating a submersible submarine fleet when the enemy uses atomic weapons. Only because the idea was submitted by the First Secretary himself, the project, so inconsistent in terms of requirements, continued to be stubbornly developed.
The project, which received the number "1231", was instructed to develop TsKB-19, for the development and construction of prototypes, he was given a marine plant in the city of Leningrad. This is what served as the unification of TsKB-19 and Leningrad TsKB-5 in the future in the Almaz Central Design Bureau.
The development of a unique ship was carried out with great difficulty, it is worth noting that the main developments were made by the boat bureau, which had to study the design of submarines on the go. Linking together a surface ship and a submarine was a difficult task, and the designers had to show miracles of ingenuity and simplification.
In accordance with the terms of reference received from the naval department of the Soviet Union, the 1231 project was to be used to deliver fast missile strikes against enemy surface transport in places close to the main enemy bases. The missile ships were supposed to arrive in a given area and be in it in a submerged state and wait for the approach of enemy surface forces. With a sufficient approach of the enemy, the missile ships, surfacing, went to the distance of delivering a missile strike, after which they left at high speed in a submerged or surface position.
Design work unusual ship began in early 1959 and ended with the departure of Nikita Khrushchev from leading political positions in 1964. No one can say for sure now how the construction of a submersible rocket ship would have ended if Nikita Khrushchev had not left the post of First Secretary of the Party Central Committee.
Main characteristics:
- surface speed 38 knots;
- underwater speed 4 knots;
- crew of the ship 12 people;
- four cruise missiles of the P-25 complex;
- approximate cost in 1960 - 40 million rubles;
Amphibious transport boat of the project "717"
By 1962, the American submarine fleet is making a breakthrough in the construction of nuclear submarines. Soviet Union trying in urgently catch up and overtake the main competitor in nuclear shipbuilding.
To gain leadership status, the Soviet Union begins designing large submarines. for various purposes. In 1967, the Malachite design bureau received a technical assignment from the naval department for the design of a submarine for transporting troops of up to 1,000 people and a dozen armored vehicles for combat missions.
KB "Malachite" already had experience in the development of large submarines of project "664" and project "748".
If the nuclear-powered ship had been built, it would have become the largest submarine ever. A displacement of 18 thousand tons, a height of a five-story building, a length equal to 2 football fields - a real giant of the underwater world was intended to transport the regiment marines and various weapons and cargo to the assigned landing areas to capture bridgeheads on enemy territory.
In accordance with the project, the hull of the submarine was made of 2 cylinders. The compartment of central importance housed the personnel of the boat and landing units, numbering more than one thousand people. On the sides of the boat in the compartments there were bottom mines in the amount of up to 400 units, the placement of which, according to calculations, could lock the entire composition of the US Sixth Fleet in Norfolk. By 1969, work on the design of the boat of the project "717" was completed.
But by that time, the Soviet Union urgently needed ballistic missile submarines to achieve military parity with the United States, all the forces of the Central Design Bureau and shipyards were thrown into the development and construction nuclear submarines with nuclear weapons. All work on the sea leviathan was suspended and finally stopped.
The main characteristics of the project "717":
- width 23 meters;
- diving depth up to 300 meters;
- speed 18 knots;
- duration of autonomous navigation 2.5 months;
Armament:
— six torpedo tubes;
- 18 anti-submarine missiles;
- artillery guns 2 installations;
Transportation:
— regiment of marines with 4 armored personnel carriers-60;
- Marine battalion with 20 armored vehicles.
Project "667M" - nuclear submarine "Andromeda"
In the early 80s, the United States began to receive nuclear submarines with Tomahawk missiles capable of hitting a target at a distance of 2.5 thousand kilometers. In the Soviet Union, in the Design Bureau. Chelomey is urgently developing the Meteorit-M complex in pursuit. The cruise missile of the ZM25 complex was superior in speed to the American counterpart Tomahawk and was intended to destroy enemy ground targets and targets.
It was for this missile system that design work began on the re-equipment of the Project 667A submarine, which was commissioned by the USSR Navy at the end of 1970. The work was carried out from 82 to 85 at the Severodvinsk plant. The missile compartment was completely replaced, 12 missiles of the Meteorit-M complex were located in the new compartment.
The submarine receives a new designation "667M", the number "K-420", the Americans called it "Yankee-sidecar". At the end of 1983, he became part of Northern Fleet, and after 30 days, combat tests of the missile system begin. The missiles not only accurately hit the target, but also exceeded all declared indicators, there were no breakdowns and emergencies.
In 1989, after the conversion, the project was closed. The missiles are fired, and the submarine is used as a torpedo submarine. In 1993 the boat was put into long-term storage.
The main characteristics of "Andromeda":
— displacement of 7.7 thousand tons;
- length 130 meters;
- width 12 meters;
- draft 8.7 meters;
- diving depth 320 meters;
- speed 27 knots;
- crew of 120 people;
Armament:
- RK "Meteorit-M", ammunition 12 missiles;
- TA caliber 533 mm;
- control system of RK "Andromeda".
Underwater barges and tankers
In the 80s she became actual idea submarine barges and tankers. In the confrontation between Iraq and Iran, in just 2 years, about 300 various oil vessels and transports were destroyed.
Western countries and the Soviet Union are forced to protect vehicles, and therefore in the USSR, in the Design Bureau "Malachite", the project begins to be implemented nuclear submarine transport destination.
By the beginning of 1990, projects for tankers and barges with a carrying capacity of up to 30,000 tons were fully completed. But due to the change in the political system, the collapse of the USSR into separate states, the projects of underwater supertransporters were never implemented.
To return to the idea of underwater heavy trucks began today because of the aggravated cases of maritime terrorism.
Underwater transport will be able to deliver more cargo at a depth of up to 100 meters at a speed of up to 19 knots. The team of such transport workers will be about 35 people.
