What Really Happened When These 4 Vehicles Imploded – SlashGear

The USS Thresher met its tragic end on April 10, 1963, off the coast of Maine. At the time of its disappearance, it was engaging in sea trials that involved diving to its maximum depth of 1,300 feet. During these trials the submarine regularly communicated with the nearby USS Skylark. 

When those communications stopped, shortly after 9 a.m., it was clear that a major problem had occurred. The U.S. Navy launched a weeks-long search and investigation into what happened to one of its most technologically advanced submarines. Debris from the sub was eventually discovered 8,400 feet down, on the ocean bed, on June 27.

It was eventually concluded that a leak, caused by insecure joints, resulted in flooding — which in turn caused the reactor and other vital systems to shut down. Without power, the USS Thresher began to uncontrollably descend. At some point below its 1,300-foot operating depth, the submarine will have hit its crush depth. Hitting this depth results in the catastrophic failure of the hull due to implosion. 

All 129 men on board the submarine were killed. The USS Thresher remains one of only two U.S. nuclear submarines that the Navy has lost in its history. The other, the USS Scorpion, also ultimately imploded — though it isn’t certain that implosion caused its loss. Over the years, several theories have been put forward, including everything from a torpedo malfunction to a Soviet attack.