Old, but good

An effective engine from Goethe’s time

This Gotland-class submarine is powered by a Stirling engine - which has unbeatable advantages.(Bild: wikipedia)

A few years ago, the US Navy borrowed a Gotland-class submarine and crew from Sweden. Why? Because of a special engine. Author and scientist Christian Mähr explains what is behind this "lovechild of technical intelligence". 

The submarine was transferred to San Diego and left there together with a so-called carrier group, i.e. aircraft carriers and escort ships. The Swedish boat was supposed to sneak through the defense ring of the other ships and sink the carrier - not really, of course, it was just a maneuver.