· The first hydrophone was invented by 1914 by Reginald Fessenden, a Canadian inventor who actually started working on the idea as a way to locate icebergs following the Titanic disaster; however, it was of limited use because it could not tell the direction of an underwater object, only the distance.
· The hydrophone was further improved by the Frenchman Paul Langevin and Russian Constantin Chilowsky, who invented an ultrasound transducer relying on the electric charge held in certain minerals.
· A thin layer of quartz held between two metal plates responded to tiny changes in water pressure resulting from sound waves, allowing the user to determine both the distance and direction of an underwater object.
· Hydrophones lowered the risk of German U-boat attacks which were a big threat.
· Eventually Americans perfected the Hydrophones which could now detect U-boats up to 25 miles away.
· The hydrophone was further improved by the Frenchman Paul Langevin and Russian Constantin Chilowsky, who invented an ultrasound transducer relying on the electric charge held in certain minerals.
· A thin layer of quartz held between two metal plates responded to tiny changes in water pressure resulting from sound waves, allowing the user to determine both the distance and direction of an underwater object.
· Hydrophones lowered the risk of German U-boat attacks which were a big threat.
· Eventually Americans perfected the Hydrophones which could now detect U-boats up to 25 miles away.