A submarine is any naval vessel that is capable of propelling itself beneath the water as well as on the water's surface. First devised as a watercraft in the 19th century, the submarine was quickly adopted by navies around the world, for attack and defensive purposes. But by its very nature as a vessel designed to spend many weeks, if not months, submerged, a submarine is an inherently dangerous environment to live and work in. And when something goes wrong, the likelihood of escape is very limited. Sadly, this has been proven on numerous occasions where stricken vessels have quickly sunk, killing all hands or trapping them to endure a long and agonizing demise.
Click on to explore this gallery of catastrophic underwater accidents.