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[Perfection]

Water Treatment Methods

Heat : Heat kills micro organisms, bringing water to a boil is adequate for disinfection.

Chlorine : Chlorine has been used for several centuries for water disinfection. The most common objection to it is the flavor.

Iodine : It has advantages over chlorine in convenience and probably efficacy; many travellers find the taste less offensive as well. It should not be used by persons with allergy to iodine, persons with active thyroid disease or pregnant women.

Use Betadine® (10% povidone-iodine) in a small dropper bottle, and fill up the bottle (1litre) from a stream, drop in 4 drops of Betadine®, screw on the lid, and half an hour later, it is ready to drink.

Filtration : Filters work by physically removing infectious agents from the water. The organisms vary tremendously in size, from large parasitic cysts (Giardia and Entamoeba histolytica 5-30 µm), to smaller bacteria (E. coli 0.5 x 3 µm, Campylobacter 0.2 x 2 µm), to the smallest viruses (0.03 µm). Thus, how well filters work depends to a great extent on the physical size of the pores in the filter medium.

[Perfection]

INS Viraat, India's Aircraft carrier in active service. INS Vikrant is decomissioned and is now a museum anchored at Mumbai harbour.

INS Viraat was originally commissioned in the Royal Navy as HMS Hermes on 18 November 1959. During her career as Hermes, she served as the flagship of the Royal Navy's task force in the Falkland Islands campaign. She would serve the Royal Navy another three years until she was stricken from active duty in 1985.

The Indian Navy purchased the vessel in April 1986 and gave it an extensive refit at Devonport Dockyard to allow for continued operability into the next decade. New fire control equipment, navigation radars, improved NBC protection, and deck landing aids were installed in this refit. Boilers were converted to operate on distillate fuel. In September 1993, the engine room of Viraat flooded, temporarily putting the vessel out of service for several months. By 1995, the vessel was back in service and had a new search radar.

Between July 1999 and April 2001, INS Viraat completed another life-extension refit which is expected to extend her serviceability till 2010. This refit upgraded propulsion systems, added a package of sensors to sound emergency alerts, and introduced modern communication system. In addition, long-range surveillance radar, weapon systems, and new hangar with fire curtains was installed. The lift system was revamped to reduce reaction time in the event of an attack and a new flood alarm system was installed. In early June 2001 Viraat returned to service after nearly two years of refit.

The vessel also took part in the International Fleet Review in Mumbai in February 2001. The vessel had to be towed back to dry dock for another refit in mid-2003 and returned to service only in November 2004, during which the vessel was fitted with the Barak SAM.

In 2004, India bought the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov from Russia for US$1.5 billion; it is expected to enter service in 2008 as INS Vikramaditya.However INS Viraat would be repleaced by 2011-2012 by a new Vikrant class carrier.

Viraat is fitted with a 12° ski jump to operate the Sea Harrier, a reinforced flight deck, 1.2 inches of armour over magazines and machinery spaces. The magazine capacity includes 80+ lightweight torpedoes. The vessel retains commando transport capability, for around 750 troops and carries four LCVP landing craft aft.

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INS Viraat Aircraft carrier, India

Air Group

* Fleet Defense - Sea Harrier FRS Mk.51 (Capacity for 30)
* Airborne Early Warning - Kamov Ka-31 Helix-B
* ASW/ASV - Sea King Mk.42B and Kamov Ka-28 Helix-A
* Commando Assault and Vertical Replenishment - Sea King Mk.42C

Radar

* Air Search - One Bharat/Signaal RAWL 02 radar at C/D-band frequency
* Air/Surface Search - One RAWS 08 radar at E-band frequency
* Navigation - Two Bharat Rashmi radars at I-band frequency
* Fire Control - EL/M-2221 STGR radar
* Tacan - FT 13-S/M

Sonar : One Graseby Type 184M hull-mounted sonar, with active search & attack capability from 6-9 kHz.

Combat Data Systems : Italian Elmar communication suites have been fitted. CAAIS action data automation; Link 10. Has SATCOM systems on-board.

Self Defense Armament : 2 x 40mm Bofors guns, 16 x Barak SAM VL cells.

Countermeasures : A Bharat Ajanta ESM is used for intercept purposes. Two Knebworth Corvus chaff launchers are used as decoys.

Propulsion : 2 Parsons geared steam turbines, 76,000 shp (57 MW) and 4 boilers with 400 psi

Length : 226.5 m

Draught : 8.8 m

Beam : 48.78 m

Displacement : 23,900 tons (standard) and 28,700 tons (full)

Maximum Speed : 28 knots (52 km/h)

Maximum Range : 6500 miles at 14 knots.

Aircraft : 28 aircraft, including Sea HarriersMk.51 and Mk.52, H-3 Sea King Mk.42, HAL Chetak, HAL Dhruv.

Complement : 1207 crew, 143 Aircrew.

[adam-wells]

Wow. thats quite interesting.

[Perfection]

Chemical Expolsives : An explosive (solid, liquid or gas) which produce high temperature and pressure released within a fraction of a second, when explosive action is initiated.

eg - Gun powder (UN No 1) - first explosive, 10 th C in China, Dynamite (by Alfred Nobel, C3H5(ONO2)2, TNT (Tri Nitro Toluene), RDX (Research Development Explosive), PETN (a plastic explosive - Pentra Erythetol Tetra Nitrate - C(CH2ONO2)4) etc.

Nuclear Explosive : Highly destructive compared to Chemical explosives. Fission (Atom bomb), Fusion (Hydrogen bomb) and Neutron bombs (destructive to living things only).

Nuclear fission (Strassman & Otto Hann in 1939) : A heavy nucleus is split into two or more lighter nuclei with tremendous release of energy. 1.3 gram of U 235 produces 1 MW of electricity.

First Atom bombs were dropped in Hiroshima (6 Aug 1945) and in Nagasakki (9 Aug 1945) in Japan by USA. The yields of the bombs were around 20 kt (of TNT).

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The bomb dropped in Hiroshima was Little Boy having 9000 lb in weight and using Uranium 235 as fuel. The Nagasakki bomb - Fat man - 10, 000 pound in weight used Plutonium 239 as fuel.

Both bombs were dropped by Capt Paul Tibbet, US pilot of Enola Gay. Plane has 9 crews and 4 scientists. The bomb was dropped in Hiroshima at 0815 h (local time) and after 51 second of time it exploded at a height of 2000 ft above sea level. During explosion light, heat and radiations with shock (high pressure) waves produced. The death toll on both bombs stand at 0.34 million.

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Nuclear fusion (E Teller) : Two lighter nuclei has fused to form heavier nuclei at high temperature and pressure. They are also called thermonuclear reations due to the high temperature required (~10^8 C). First an Atom bomb is exploded to create the conditions for fusion in which Dueterium nuclei are fused to form Helium with the release of tremendous amount of energy.

USA has tested 60 Mt (having 60,000,000 tons of TNT's explosive power) fusion bomb. (1 ton = 1000 kg)

Radiation sickness : During nuclear explosion, radiations are emitted and can cause radiation sickness. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, loss of hair & appetite. More radiation dose can cause destruction of bone marrow and thus leading to blood cancer (lukemia). The most sensitve part of the body to radiation are testes (genital tissues), bone marrow, ovary, skin,
liver and kidney.

[Perfection]

Nuclear tests

The first nuclar test (12 kt) by India was at Pokhran desert in Rajastan on 18 May 1974. Later on 11 & 13 May 1998, conducted five tests including a fusion device of yields 15 and 45 kt o TNT.

USA has conducted more than 1036 tests (more than that by Russia). Russia has more tonnage of nuclear warheads in its arsenal.

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Nuclear reactor (Atomic pile) : In nuclear reactor, fission is performed in in a controlled fashion to release energy. Fuels like U 235 & Pu 239 ar fissioned and with the help of moderators, a sustained chain reaction is achieved. First nuclear reactor is at Calder Hall in UK by Fermi in 1956.

Moderators are used to slowdown fast neutrons released in U 235 fission. eg - Graphite, Heavy water (Plants in Talchar in Orissa and Punjab), Beryllium etc.

First nuclear reactor in India - 1 MW Apsara reactor. First power reactor in India - Tarapur, Maharashtra, 1972. 2.7 % of the total power in India comes from nuclear reactors (3000 MW). India's power reactors are at Narrora (UP), Kota (440 MW, Rajastan), Kalpakkam (440 MW), Tarapur (1000 MW).

CIR (Cirus) : Reactor with Canadian collaboration at BARC (Bhabha Atomic Research Centre - India's prime nuclear research establishment), Mumbai. It is a 40 MW research reactor producing U 233 & Pu 239.

Chernobyl reactor in Russia leaked by accident in 26 April 1986.

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Largest Submarine : Typhoon, 170 m, Russia.
Russia has 128 submarines of which 91 are nuclear powered.

USA has 74 nuclear powered submarines. Of the 12 US Aircraft carriers, 10 is nuclear powered. First nuclear powered US Aircraft carrier is USS Nimitz. USS Enterprise : Length 335.2 metre, 32 knots speed, 3325 crew, 99 aircrafts on board. World's largest Air Force & Navy - USA.

First nuclear submarine - Nautilus, USA.

India has 19 submarines of whch none is nuclear powered. In 1988, India has leased a nuclear submarine - INS Chakra from Russia - later returned it.

More than 80 % of the power comes from nuclear reactors in developed countries.