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A limpet mine is a type of naval mine attached to a target by magnets. It is so named because of its superficial similarity to the limpet, a type of sea snail that clings tightly to rocks or other hard surfaces. A swimmer or diver may attach the mine, which is usually designed with hollow compartments to give the mine only a slight negative buoyancy, making it easier to handle underwater. Usually limpet mines are set off by a time fuze. They may also have an anti-handling device, making the mine explode if removed from the hull by enemy divers or by explosions. Sometimes the limpet mine was fitted with a small turbine which would detonate the mine after the ship had sailed a certain distance, so that it was likely to sink in navigable channels or deep water out of reach of easy salvage and making it harder to find what caused the sinking. == History == In December 1938, a new unit was created in the British military that soon became known as Military Intelligence (Research) — usually abbreviated as MI(R) or occasionally as MIR. MI(R) absorbed a technical section that was at first known as MI(R)c. In April 1939, Joe Holland, the head of MIR, recruited his old friend Major Millis Rowland Jefferis (1899–1963〔Unattributed. Sir Millis Jefferis – New Weapons Of War (Obituary). ''The Times'', 7 September 1963 p. 10 column E.〕) as director of the technical section and under his leadership the team would go on to develop a wide range of innovative weapons.〔National Archive. T 166 – Hearing 16 November 1953 – Macrae. Document 320〕 One of Jefferis' earliest ideas was for a type of mine that could be towed behind a rowboat, but which would attach itself to the hull of a ship that it passed. Getting a heavy bomb to stick to a ship reliably was a problem; the obvious answer was to use magnets which should be as powerful as possible. In July 1939, Jefferis read an issue of the popular magazine ''Armchair Science'', which contained a small article on magnets: On 17 July 1939, he contacted the editor of the magazine for more information about the magnets; the editor was Stuart Macrae. During World War I, Macrae had briefly worked on a device for dropping hand grenades from aircraft, and he longed for a return to working on such challenges. When Jefferis' call came, he promptly undertook to perform experiments and to produce prototypes. Macrae contacted Cecil Vandepeer Clarke (1897–1961) then managing director of the Low Loading Trailer Company—Macrae had been editor of a caravan and trailer magazine. He had been impressed by Clarke's work on caravans a couple of years previously and he needed his expertise and the use of his workshops.〔National Archive. T 166 — Hearing 16 November 1953 — Macrae. Document 328.〕 Macrae and Clarke soon agreed to cooperate on the design of a new weapon, but they quickly abandoned any thought of a towed mine as impractical. Instead, they worked on a bomb that could be carried by a diver and attached directly to a ship.〔National Archive. T 166-21 Awards to Inventors — Macrae and others.〕 The new weapon would become known as a limpet mine. The first versions were assembled in a few weeks. The innovative design included a ring of small strong magnets for adhesion and the detonator used slowly dissolving aniseed ball sweets to provide the necessary time to get away.〔Unattributed. "Limpet Bomb Claim By Inventors — Use Of Aniseed Balls." ''The Times'' 17 November 1953 p. 4 column F.〕 Just before war was declared, Macrae's name was put forward to Holland who arranged to meet him. Holland considered that Macrae would make a good second in command for Jefferis: He saw Macrae as a capable administrator who could keep his geniuses in order. Macrae joined the War Office as a civilian and Holland saw to it that Macrae got a commission in October 1939 (backdated to 1 September).〔 Clarke joined the top secret Cultivator No. 6 project as a civilian and later joined the army. He served in the Special Operations Executive (SOE) with Colin Gubbins and would later be appointed Commandant of one of the Secret Intelligence Service's schools.〔National Archive. HS 9/321/8 – SOE Personnel File: Cecil Vandepeer Clarke.〕 He eventually rejoined Macrae when he was transferred to MD1 in 1942. The "rigid limpets" used by the British during World War II contained only of explosive,〔; 〕 but placed below the water line they caused a wide hole in an unarmoured ship. SOE agents could be provided with a long placing rod.〔; 〕 A smaller version named "Clam" was developed from the British limpet for use on land. After it was used on ''Wehrmacht Heer'' armored fighting vehicles of Nazi Germany, the German Zimmerit coating was developed to counter it. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Limpet mine」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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