This story reads like an edge-of-your-seat Hollywood action adventure film. The best stories are always true and, better still, in this one 3D technology is the hero.
Initially, a stevedore company was tasked with removing the volatile cargo from the SS Richard Montgomery but after only a day into the effort, the hull of the ship had cracked open, complicating the removal of the explosives. The removal effort continued for nearly a month but then was abandoned in late September of 1944. By that time, the ship had broken into two separate parts and the explosives remained on board.
The SS Richard Montgomery is, in essence, a “ticking time bomb.” The approximately 2,000 cases of cluster bombs and the hundreds of standard bombs, each of which weighs almost 1,000 lbs., have the potential to cause enormous damage. According to one historian, “the blast could cause a tidal wave,” and, warned New Scientist magazine in a 2004 article, “if the ship exploded, it would create one of the biggest non-nuclear blasts ever seen and would devastate the port of Sheerness, causing up to £1 billion (around $1.4 billion) damage.”
Probably obviously, monitoring the condition of the explosives that are still on board the SS Richard Montgomery is of critical importance and this is where cutting-edge 3D technology comes in. The Maritime Coastline Agency, which spends around £40,000 (a little over $57,000) monitoring the ship 24/7 for years, recently used “multi-beam sonar technology” to create a remarkably detailed, 3D image of the ship. The incredible, high-resolution image allows the MCA, scientists and technicians to actually look inside of the hold of the vessel and to get a clearer sense of the position and state of the explosives.
The MCA did not indicate what the next steps might be in the high-stakes drama of the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery but it seems clear that 3D technology will continue to play a key role in monitoring the ship and, hopefully, facilitating the long-awaited removal of the decades-old explosives that threaten the English coast. Tell us your thoughts on this issue in 3D Technology May Help Remove Explosives forum over at 3DPB.com.
Subscribe to Our Email Newsletter
Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from the 3D printing industry and receive information and offers from third party vendors.
Print Services
Upload your 3D Models and get them printed quickly and efficiently.
You May Also Like
Hyperion Robotics, UK National Grid to Use 3D Printing for Low-Carbon Substation Foundations
Hyperion Robotics, a Finnish provider of additive construction (AC) solutions specializing in low-carbon infrastructure projects, has partnered with UK utilities giant National Grid to test the use of 3D printed...
Ukrainian Researchers Partner with NSF, US Navy to Turn Debris Into New 3D Printed Buildings
Ukrainian researchers have started a project to try to turn waste from demolished buildings into new 3D printed ones. This is especially relevant in Ukraine, where tens of thousands of...
Verustruct’s Housing-Ready 3D Printing Tech and the Former SpaceX Engineer Behind It
Nick Callegari never planned on building houses. But after designing spacecraft parts at SpaceX, he decided to aim for something a little closer to home. The result is Verustruct, a...
RIC Robotics Teases Zyrex Giantroid Robot For Dreambuilding
RIC Robotics is teasing the Zyrex, what it calls a Giantroid. 6 meters in height with a 7 meter span, the autonomous (but human-monitored) construction robot is slated for release...