'Fireballs' on US Submarines (USS Silversides)

This will bring fond memories to the flangeheads who worked the After Engine Room and had the balls to sit in the doorway to maneuvering...

In WW2, there were reports of Ball Lightning type fireballs on board U.S. Submarines. It was suspected that these rare events were caused by the very high inrush currents when the switch was closed from the huge capacity battery banks into the powerful DC electric motors which propelled the submarines. In his 4 decade search to understand some of the many possible causes of Ball Lightning, Robert K. Golka managed to 'Borrow' a submarine for experiments, using the many thousand amp generators used to recharge there huge battery banks. On Board the USS Silversides Submarine, he short circuits the DC generator outputs in attempts to duplicate this inrush current with the hopes of creating the rare fireballs reported only in this series of submarines.