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Thai cave rescue: Elon Musk building 'kid-size submarine' for trapped boys
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Elon Musk smiles as he attends a forum in Hong Kong
PHOTO Elon Musk said the submarine was "small enough to get through narrow gaps".
REUTERS: BOBBY YIP
Tech billionaire Elon Musk says he has been building a "tiny, kid-size submarine" with "feedback from Thailand" in an effort to rescue 12 boys and their soccer coach trapped in a cave.
Mr Musk said it would use a SpaceX Falcon rocket's "liquid oxygen transfer tube as [the] hull".
"Light enough to be carried by two divers, small enough to get through narrow gaps," the Tesla and SpaceX entrepreneur posted on Twitter.
He said the design had four "handles/hitch points" on both the front and back of the submarine.
"Two air tank connections on front and two on rear, allowing one to four tanks simultaneously connected, all recessed for impact protection [with] secondary cap seal if leak develops," Mr Musk said.
It also has "segmented compartments to place rocks or dive weights [and] adjust buoyancy".
Thai cave complex
PHOTO A 3D graphic of Tham Luang cave system in Thailand shows where the team is trapped.
Mr Musk said he was constructing the mini-submarine in Los Angeles with his SpaceX team, and expected it to be completed by about 12:30pm AEST.
He said it would then take 17 hours to fly it to Thailand.
He said he was also making an "inflatable tube with airlocks", which was "less likely to work, given tricky contours".
Earlier, Mr Musk said he was sending engineers from his Boring Company — which digs tunnels for advanced transport systems — and SpaceX to Thailand "to see if they can be helpful".
They were expected to reach the cave today.
Boys wrapped in silver thermal blankets smile at the camera in a video still image
PHOTO The boys have been trapped in the cave for two weeks.
AP: ROYAL THAI NAVY FACEBOOK PAGE
The Thai Government said Mr Musk's team could help the rescue operation with location tracking, water pumping or battery power.
'Don't forget my birthday'
Letters written by the Thai soccer team while trapped in a cave have been released, with the children sending love to their relatives and their coach apologising to parents.
The boys, 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach went exploring in the cave after a soccer game two weeks ago, when monsoon flooding cut off their escape and prevented rescuers from finding them for almost 10 days.
With oxygen levels dropping and rain forecast, time has been running out on a plan to teach the boys — not strong swimmers — to make a dive through narrow, waterlogged passageways that would challenge experienced cavers.
Rescue teams have been making preparations to save the boys, with the leader of the rescue effort saying the best window for a rescue could come in the next three or four days.
Thai rescue team members walk inside the cave
PHOTO Time has been running out on a plan to teach the boys.
AP: ROYAL THAI NAVY
More on this story:
Elon Musk sends SpaceX, Boring Co to help rescue Thai soccer team
'Don't forget my birthday': Thai boys write to parents
Parents write letters to Thai coach
Rice farmer volunteers at rescue site despite flooded farm
How the Thai soccer team could dive out of the cave
Volunteers coming in droves to support rescue mission
Chilean miner sends message of hope to Thai boys
Thailand's 'Tham Luang' cave a magnet for teen adventurers
Goalie was due to celebrate birthday after cave visit
Wait, walk or dive? Authorities debate best way to escape
Thai mothers see footage of their trapped sons
ABC/Reuters
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She got the idea from Elon musk
