Submarines: The All Seeing Periscope

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April 24,2008: The U.S. Navy is installing a 360 degree video camera in the periscopes of its subs. Currently, the navy uses a 12 megapixel day camera, and a lower rez (640x480 pixel) night vision camera. Both of these display the images on various flat panel displays inside the ship, including a very large one in the CIC (Combat Information Center). The 360 degree camera will record all that it sees, so that the crew can later review what was there. This will enable the sub to keep its periscope above water for a minimal amount of time when in hostile territory, or provide a record of what was happening in case there's an accident as the sub is surfacing. The technology (from RemoteReality) is already used in commercial products. Over the last decade, the navy has been replacing traditional optical periscopes with electronic ones, using digital cameras.