Life Aboard A U.S. Nuclear Attack Submarine (Video)

CNN: Life aboard a U.S. submarine

(CNN)Sailing on a U.S. nuclear attack submarine is a trip into a cramped, timeless, windowless undersea world. My team and I got an exclusive trip on the USS Missouri during exercises in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida.

The first thing we noticed is how just how precious space is on board -- and how the crews, who spend six months at sea on deployment, manage to stay out of each other's way. About a third of the 337-foot vessel is taken up by the onboard nuclear reactor and propulsion, leaving a tiny living and work space for the sailors.

The Missouri spent 163 of 181 days underwater on its last deployment.

Every last inch is conserved and made ready for multiple uses. The officers' wardroom, where senior officers dine, doubles as an operating theater in medical emergencies. The torpedo room doubles as exercise room and sometimes bunkroom. Sleeping space is in particularly short supply. In fact, Virginia-class submarines like the Missouri have fewer beds than sailors -- about 94 for the 135 crew. That requires what the crews not so affectionately call "hot-racking," where sailors share bunks and sleep in shifts.

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Update: Video Offers Rare Look Inside a US Nuclear Attack Submarine (Military.com)

WNU Editor: This is all happening during a time when Russian sub activity is expanding .... CNN visits nuclear submarine as deep-sea tensions with Russia grow (CNN).