Whitehead Mark 1B torpedo
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox weapon
| name = Whitehead Mark 1B torpedo
| image = Whitehead torpedo General Profile, The Whitehead Torpedo U.S.N.1898.jpg
| image_size = 300
| caption = Whitehead torpedo mechanism, published 1891
| origin = Austria-Hungary
| type = Anti-surface ship torpedo{{cite web | title = Torpedo History: Whitehead Torpedo Mk1 | url= http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/keyport/html/part2.htm | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121109202125/http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/keyport/html/part2.htm | url-status= dead | archive-date= 9 November 2012 | access-date = 8 June 2013}}
| is_ranged = yes
| is_explosive = yes
| is_missile = yes
| used_by = United States Navy{{cite web|url=http://navalunderseamuseum.org/media/6c06204b6731dd48ffff8336ffffe906.pdf|title=Artifact Spotlight: Whitehead torpedo|access-date=8 June 2013|archive-date=12 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512032155/http://navalunderseamuseum.org/media/6c06204b6731dd48ffff8336ffffe906.pdf|url-status=dead}}
| wars =
| designer = Robert Whitehead
| manufacturer = Torpedofabrik Whitehead & Co.{{cite web | title = Chronology: Torpedo in Word and Picture | url = http://www.muzej-rijeka.hr/torpedo/en/chronology.html | access-date = 2013-06-08 | archive-date = 6 April 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140406180154/http://www.muzej-rijeka.hr/torpedo/en/chronology.html | url-status = dead }}
E. W. Bliss Company
| length = 197 inches (5.0 meters)
| diameter = 17.7 inches (45 centimeters)
| filling = wet guncotton
| detonation = War Nose Mk 1 contact exploder
| engine = 3-cylinder reciprocating
| guidance = depth control, gyroscope
| launch_platform = battleships and torpedo boats
}}
The Whitehead Mark 1B torpedo,{{cite book | last = Silverstone | first = Paul | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5AoHOUZ0KzYC&pg=PR23 | title = The New Navy, 1883–1922 | publisher = Taylor & Francis Group | year = 2006 | pages = xxiii | isbn = 0-415-97871-8}} designated as a Torpedo Type B,{{cite web | title = United States of America, Torpedoes Pre-World War II | url=http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_PreWWII.htm | access-date = 25 June 2013}} was a variant of the Whitehead Mark 1 torpedo adopted by the United States Navy for use in an anti-surface ship role after the E. W. Bliss Company of Brooklyn, New York secured manufacturing rights in 1892. The primary differences between the Mark 1 and the Mark 1B were that the Mark 1B was longer, carried a heavier guncotton charge in the warhead and included an improved guidance system.{{cite book | title = The Whitehead Torpedo | publisher = Bureau of Ordnance, United States Navy | year = 1898 | url = http://maritime.org/doc/whitehead/}}
Characteristics
The Mark 1B was ordinarily assembled into three sections: the warhead, the air flask and the after-body. The warhead carried the explosive charge of wet guncotton. The Mark 1B was a "cold-running" torpedo. The three-cylinder reciprocating engine ran on cold, compressed air which was stored in the air flask at 1350 pounds per square inch. The after-body carried the engine and the tail, which contained the propellers.
The Mark 1B guidance component included the Pendulum-and-hydrostat control device which was called the "Whitehead Secret" and, for the last forty units of the production, the Obry steering gyro for azimuth control. This device reduced the maximum deviation right or left of the target from 24 to 8 yards.{{cite web | title = United States of America Torpedoes Pre-World War II | url= http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_PreWWII.htm | access-date = 24 June 2013}}
The Mark 1B was launched from battleships and torpedo boats.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
{{US Navy torpedoes}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitehead Mark 1B torpedo}}