Editing Russian submarine Kursk (K-141) (section)

=== Explosion ===

On the first day of the exercise, ''Kursk'' successfully launched a Granit missile armed with a dummy warhead.<ref name=potts/>  Two days later, on the morning of 12 August, ''Kursk'' prepared to fire [[dummy torpedo]]es at the {{sclass|Kirov|battlecruiser}} ''Pyotr Velikiy''. These practice torpedoes had no explosive warheads and were manufactured and tested at a much lower quality standard.<ref>{{Cite news| last = Dikkenberg | first = John | title = Raising the Kursk | newspaper = Sydney Morning Herald |publisher = Newspaper Source Plus | date = 19 October 2001 }}</ref> On 12 August 2000, at 11:28 local time (07:28 [[UTC]]), there was an explosion while preparing to fire.<ref>Rosenberg, Debra, ''et al''. "A Mystery In The Deep." ''Newsweek'' 136.9 (2000): 34. Academic Search Premier. Web. 7 December 2011.</ref> The Russian Navy's final report on the disaster concluded the explosion was due to the failure of one of ''Kursk''{{`s}} hydrogen peroxide-fueled [[Type 65 torpedo]]es.<ref>Sviatov, George. "The Kursk's Loss Offers Lessons." ''U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings'', 129.6 (2003): 71. Academic Search Premier. Web. 7 December 2011.</ref> A subsequent investigation concluded that [[high-test peroxide]] (HTP), a form of highly concentrated [[hydrogen peroxide]] used as propellant for the torpedo, seeped through a faulty weld in the torpedo casing.<ref>{{Citation | last = Marshall | first = Geoff | title = The Loss of HMS Sidon | newspaper = In Depth | publisher = Submarines Association Australia | date = July 2008 | volume = 28 | issue = 4 | url = http://submarinesaustralia.com/indepth_archive/in_depth__jul_08.html | access-date = 2 September 2010 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110216055128/http://submarinesaustralia.com/indepth_archive/in_depth__jul_08.html | archive-date = 16 February 2011 | df = dmy-all }}</ref> When HTP comes into contact with a catalyst, it rapidly expands by a factor of 5000, generating vast quantities of steam and oxygen. The pressure produced by the expanding HTP ruptured the kerosene fuel tank in the torpedo and set off an explosion equal to {{convert|100|–|250|kg}} of [[Trinitrotoluene|TNT]]. The submarine sank in relatively shallow water, bottoming at {{convert|108|m|ft}} about {{convert|135|km|abbr=on}} off [[Severomorsk]], at {{Coord|69|40|N|37|35|E}}. A second explosion 135 seconds after the initial event was equivalent to 3-7 tons of TNT.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.mst.edu/~rogersda/umrcourses/ge342/Forensic%20Seismology-revised.pdf |work=[[Missouri University of Science and Technology]]|title=Some Practical Applications of Forensic Seismology |first1=J. David|last1=Rogers|first2=Keith D.|last2=Koper |access-date=5 September 2010}}</ref> The explosions blew a large hole in the hull and caused the first three compartments of the submarine to collapse, killing or incapacitating all but 23 of the 118 personnel on board.<ref name="underwood"/>{{rp|208}}