MythBusters

I know it looks like we have fun on this show, but we spend

weeks and sometimes months planning how to do our myths safely.

So, please, don't try this at home.

On this episode of "MythBusters"...

...Adam and Jamie launch a prolonged assault...

That was awesome!

..on a devilishly difficult weaponry myth.

That is amazing!

That's what I'm talking about.

Finding out if 13th century Syrians...

She's hungry for some boat! Aren't you girl?

...created the world's first rocket-powered torpedo.

I don't know, maybe that was a little too powerful. What do you think?

Meanwhile, Kari, Grant and Tory are feeling the pressure.

It's really strange having a job doing things

your parents told you never to do.

As they pop the cork on a vino myth,

can a blaze in a wine bottle truck

really turn into a cork-firing machine gun?

This is why we can never have anything nice.

Who are the MythBusters?

Adam Savage...

Here we go...

That's 100% wacky right there.

...and Jamie Hyneman.

Relax. This won't hurt a bit.

Between them, more than 30 years of special effects experience.

Joining them, Tory Belleci, ...

This is real science!

...Kari Byron, ...

Let's do it.

...and Grant Imahara.

He's alive! Ha, ha, ha, ha!

They don't just tell the myths,

they put them to the test.

MythBusters 9x05 - Torpedo Tastic Original air date May 4, 2011

Dude, we have got an historical weaponry myth

that is actually older than you.

Okay, check it out.

It turns out that the torpedo might have been invented

in Syria in the 13th century.

Really?

Well, okay.

So today we think of a torpedo that's something that launches

from under water and reaches its target under water.

This, in fact, was a rocket-powered device

that skimmed across the top of the water,

delivering an incendiary to its target.

Did it work?

We have no actual record of them actually using it.

We have modern speculations as to its shape and its function.

Our job is to figure out

just how viable a weapon of war it might have been.

While modern speculation abounds,

the historical record is a little sketchy.

Supposedly, this torpedo would travel over the water

and explode on impact.

But did it actually work?

The MythBusters are going to find out.

So I have scoured every historical reference I can,

and while there's not a ton of information, I think I know

where we should start.

Go on.

All the accounts generally agree on the overall shape

of this torpedo, that it is pear-shaped, with a narrow end

and a fat end, and it had two fins extending from the rear

and that it's powered by a black powder rocket

of about 20 pounds of black powder.

The question is what does the underside look like,

how it met the water.

Nobody has a speculation about that.

That's kind of up to us.

Well, why don't we go down in the shop

and each take a stab at it, and see what we get?

Exactly what I was thinking.

If you're thinking torpedoes, you're probably thinking

about World War II versions, that moved along

just under the surface of the water,

while this one was specified to skip along the top of the water,

like a small motor boat.

So, if you're thinking about motor boats, on the one hand you could pick

a deep "V" sort of a hull, which has the advantage

of tracking straight and being able to handle choppy water.

But, on the other hand, it actually requires a lot of power to do that.

You could pick a flat-bottomed sort of a hull, which moves along

very quickly on the surface of the water, but if it goes too fast

it can get air under it and actually flip and lose control,

which would be a bad thing.

Right.

There are two possible hull choices... the deep "V", or the flat bottom.

So to test which style works best, the guys begin

by designing two torpedo prototypes out of pliable copper.

Jamie is forging a flatter-bottomed torpedo,

while Adam is hammering out the deep "V".

Two different hulls and two different prototypes are soon

ready to take to the water in a head-to-head accuracy launch.

We'll see what happens.

Well, that thing's looking pretty snappy.

I'm pretty psyched about it, can't wait to try it.

How's yours?

Well, it's not quite as pretty as yours is, but it ought to work.

Let's get them out there and try 'em.

- Yeap. - All right.

And for that, the MythBusters have found the ideal location.

A lovely day to fire torpedoes.

Let's get to it.

I'm standing in one of our favorite MythBusters locations,

on the island of "Treasure Island" in the middle of San Francisco Bay,

at a fire training facility.

Now, we've filmed "Exploding Stun Gun" and "Dumpster Diving" out here,

but we have never used this pool behind me.

We're gonna use it today for testing some ancient torpedoes.

And they'll be aiming those torpedoes at a target 100 feet away.

But to get them there, first they'll need some thrust.

Our rocket power today will be supplied by this,

which provides 5.9 pounds of thrust for 2.8 seconds.

Will that translate to my torpedo making it from one end

of our 100-foot pool to the target?

Honestly, I don't think so, but that's OK,

'cause this is a relative test.

We're just trying to figure out the best hull shape at this point.

And first to launch is Adam's deep "V" design.

It's just sinking into me what we're doing.

Crazy!

In three, two, one...

There it goes.

Look at that.

That was lovely.

That was pretty neat.

Aside from curving a path straight into the wall,

Adam's torpedo did make it 30 feet across the pool.

Well, I think my torpedo did pretty well.

I think it still was showing a lot of resistance in the water,

didn't quite get up on a plane,

so I think I can actually take out a bunch of the weight in these fins,

so they might get an improved performance.

The torpedo was plowing through the water,

rather than hydroplaning, meaning it's slow and crooked,

but will an attitude adjustment make the difference?

All right. There we go.

It loves that spot in this pool.

Sadly, taking the extra weight out

didn't help Adam's lethargic torpedo.

Seems to be holding up pretty well, any suggestions?

You could strap two rockets under that rocket mount,

'cause I think you're just not getting up on top of the water.

It may be that you just don't have enough power.

I'll give it a shot.

The idea is that more thrust will not only give more power,

but also get the torpedo up on top of the water, allowing it to skim

fast and true to its target.

Adam torpedo test, two rockets, in three, two, one.

And we are lit...

That was awesome!

Two rockets did push the torpedo over 60 feet,

but it seems the "V"-shaped hull is still plowing through the water,

slowing it down and pulling it off course.

That hull shape doesn't seem like it's working very well.

The fact that it's spraying so much water around says

- that it's wasting a lot of energy. - Yeah.

With the deep "V" design shelved, it's sink or swim time

for Jamie's flat-bottomed hull.

All right, here we go.

Three, two, one...

And sink is not the option Jamie was looking for.

The only problem I saw in this one was that it submarined.

So, I figure all I have to do is bend these tail fins

with a slight downward pull to them,

and that ought to hold the front end up.

Okay. Now, to see if this minute modification

makes all the difference...

Yeah!

Where did it go?

It's just sitting right there about the halfway mark,

a little bit more.

Amazingly, the torpedo skimmed the water,

hydroplaning 70 feet straight along the pool,

proving that a flat bottom is faster and more effective.

The slight adjustment to the rear fins seemed to do the trick,

and I gotta say the flat bottom and long narrow design

allowed it to track pretty well over a great distance,

right on top of the water.

I think we're looking pretty good.

Looking pretty good.

But just to be sure, it's double or nothing.

This one's for the gold.

There you go.

Come on, baby.

Despite veering slightly off course, it's clear

that the flat bottom is straight up the best design.

And that's good news for the myth.

I think we have our design.

It goes pretty quick, don't it?

It's head and shoulders above the pear-shaped design,

I think this is what we should go with.

Okay.

Let's get out of here.

After the break...

This could be my favorite way to open up a bottle of wine.

Kari, Tory and Grant pop the cork on exploding wine.