Diver Performance in Controlling a Wet Submersible During Four-Hour Exposures to Cold Water

Six 4-hr., open-sea test trials were conducted with a wet submersible. The purpose of these trials was to assess the effects of long exposure to cold (16.5° C) water on man's ability to perform basic submersible control tasks. The subjects were experienced submersible pilots who had a minimum o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Human factors 1972-04, Vol.14 (2), p.173-180
Main Authors: Vaughan, W. S., Mavor, Anne S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Body Constitution
Body Temperature
Cold Temperature
Cold water
Control tasks
Diving
Environmental Exposure
Humans
Immersion
Male
Naval Medicine
Pilot training
Pilots
Protective Clothing
Rectum
Skin
Skin Temperature
Stability
Submergence
Task Performance and Analysis
Temperature
Temperature effects
Water depth
Water temperature
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Summary:Six 4-hr., open-sea test trials were conducted with a wet submersible. The purpose of these trials was to assess the effects of long exposure to cold (16.5° C) water on man's ability to perform basic submersible control tasks. The subjects were experienced submersible pilots who had a minimum of 20 hours training prior to the experimental trials. Skin and rectal temperatures were continuously recorded from both the pilot and rider of the submersible. A continuous record of vehicle depth and water temperature was also obtained. The pilot's task was to maintain a prescribed depth while performing a sequence of course changes for a 4-hr. period of submergence. Depth error variance was correlated with pilot core and skin temperature changes over time, and although pilot core temperature fell as much as 1.83° C, no degradation in depth control performance was apparent.
ISSN:0018-7208
1547-8181
DOI:10.1177/001872087201400207