science

USS Snatch

USS Snatch is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand USS Snatch rather than just read about it. In short: USS Snatch (ARS-27), well known as Scripps RV Argo after conversion to scientific research, was a Diver-class rescue and salvage ship commissioned by the United States Navy during World War II and in service from 11 December 1944 through 23 December 1946. Her task was to come to the aid of stricken vessels.

Key takeaways

USS Snatch belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect USS Snatch to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of USS Snatch from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

USS Snatch (ARS-27), well known as Scripps RV Argo after conversion to scientific research, was a Diver-class rescue and salvage ship commissioned by the United States Navy during World War II and in service from 11 December 1944 through 23 December 1946. Her task was to come to the aid of stricken vessels. The ship is better known for her scientific research role as the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) research vessel RV Argo. It is that name, apparently not formally recognized by Navy that maintained title to the vessel, found in the scientific literature and public releases about her wide ranging research voyages.

U.S. Naval service Snatch was laid down on 28 September 1943 by the Basalt Rock Company in Napa, California; launched on 8 April 1944; sponsored by Mrs. S. B. Johnson; and commissioned on 11 December 1944.

World War II service Snatch conducted her shakedown cruise off San Diego, California, and returned to San Francisco, California, from where she steamed on 20 February 1945 for Manus, Admiralty Islands. Under tow were the vessels (covered lighter (self-propelled)) YF-622, YF-919, and YF-926. On 4 March, she ran into heavy seas which caused 919 and 926 to collide. YF-926 was taking water and down by the bow. The seas were still rough three days later so the salvage ship changed course for Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii. YF-926 sank on the 8th, the day before reaching port. Two days later, Snatch sailed to Pearl Harbor towing the remaining lighters. Snatch steamed to Eniwetok, Marshall Islands, on 17 March. From 5 to 9 April, she participated in salvage operations of SS Esso Washington, which was grounded near the entrance of Eniwetok Passage. On the 14th, the ship steamed for Guam with a dredge and two barges in tow. En route, the ship was diverted to Tinian, Mariana Islands, arriving on 23 April. On 15 May, she sailed for Leyte Gulf, Philippine Islands, calling at Ulithi to take YF-606 and YF-1001 in tow. Snatch operated in the Philippine Islands from 26 May to 30 December 1945 when she sailed for San Diego, California. She operated from there until 23 December 1946 when she was placed in reserve, out of commission, and berthed there.

Military awards and honors Snatch's crew was eligible for the following medals:

American Campaign Medal Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal World War II Victory Medal Philippines Liberation Medal

Scientific career as RV Argo The U. S. Navy, largely through the Office of Naval Research (ONR), was a major funding source throughout the early days of oceanography. Up to 90% of U.S. oceanographic research funding from 1946 through 1965 came from Navy with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography being one of the notable research facilities and recipients of that funding. Such funding provided for both the conversion of former naval vessels to research and for their operation. The USS Snatch (ARS-27) was one of two (the other being sister ship USS Chain (ARS-20), later RV Chain, operating from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute) notable vessels undergoing such conversion. In 1960 the Snatch was converted into the vessel known in scientific literature and publicity relating to oceanography as the Scripps vessel RV Argo. The ship operated as a Scripps research vessel from that conversion in 1960 until return to Navy custody for scrapping in 1970.

Research voyages As RV Argo the ship conducted much significant research during what was termed the "Golden Age of Oceanography" by Roger Revelle. Among the notable expeditions was the series for the International Indian Ocean Expedition (IIOE) of 1960 through 1965 when Argo participated in the Monsoon Expedition of 1960–1961 and, with RV Horizon, participated the 1962 Lusiad Expedition. The ship's work added information of submarine topography (bathymetry) and geophysical properties in that relatively unexplored ocean that contributed to understanding the global ridge system and geology as well as collecting data in other disciplines. During 1966 the ship did winter work in the northwestern Pacific, Bering Sea, and the Okhotsk Sea. Argo paired again with RV Horizon for the 1967 Nova expedition conducted in the southwest Pacific. Significant information on the geological structures were reported and contributed to modern knowledge of global geology. During the Circe Expedition (1968–1969) concentrating on the geology and geophysics of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic, Argo worked in the Southwest Indian Ridge and collected specimens of "lower crustal matic and upper mantle ultramatic rocks never before recovered in oceanic areas" while also field-testing a shipboard computer linked to a prototype satellite navigation system. The ship features in the experience of a number of the well known names in oceanography and has itself given its name to ocean features. The Argo fracture zone (11°30' S 69°30' E – 16°00' S 63°00' E) is noted along with the North Australian Basin (14°30' S 116°00' E) as among a number of the ship's discoveries. The note in the GEBCO Gazetteer for the fracture zone is:

Discoverer: R/V Argo 1960, 1968, 1960 Recognized on SIO's R/V Argo, Lusiad Expedition, 1962–63. Mapped in 1968, Circe Expedition"

Reclassification to AGOR-18 After seven years of service under Office of Naval Research funding and sponsorship at Scripps and the buildup of national oceanographic resources ship formally became part of the Navy's new Auxiliary General Oceanographic Research (AGOR) fleet. The ship was changed for administrative purposes by Navy on 1 April 1967 to AGOR-18 classification and administrative ownership by the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) while continuing operations as the Scripps vessel R/V Argo.

Final decommissioning The ship was returned to US Naval custody in March 1970 and struck from the Naval Register, 1 May 1970. Final disposition: sold for scrapping, 8 November 1971, to S.S. Zee, Taiwan.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.

External links Navy Support for Oceanography at SIO Archived 27 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine Scripps Institution of Oceanography Archives, UC San Diego Libraries: R/V Argo photographs Archived 17 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Scripps Institution of Oceanography: Expeditions SIO GEOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS LIST OF EXPEDITIONS Guide to the S.I.O. Subject Files Records, 1890–1981 Photo gallery of Snatch at NavSource Naval History [1] Basalt Rock Company Shipbuilding History

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with USS Snatch

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what USS Snatch claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to USS Snatch before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about USS Snatch ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of USS Snatch

In research: USS Snatch appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses USS Snatch in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: USS Snatch is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1944 ships, Diver-class rescue and salvage ships, Research vessels of the United States, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for USS Snatch outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study USS Snatch in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what USS Snatch means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain USS Snatch out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is USS Snatch in simple terms?

Why does USS Snatch matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study USS Snatch?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on USS Snatch.