Hughes Mining Barge

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HMB-1 in San Diego, June 2005.

The Hughes Marine Barge, or HMB-1, is a submersible barge about 180 feet long and more than 70 feet tall. The HMB-1 was originally developed as part of Project Jennifer, the top-secret effort mounted by the CIA to salvage the remains of the Soviet submarine K-129 from the ocean floor. The HMB-1 was designed to be submerged under the Glomar Explorer to conceal any salvaged remains from Soviet observers.

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After the conclusion of Project Jennifer, the HMB-1 was mothballed at the Todd Shipyard in San Francisco, California until November, 1982. At that time, the Navy towed the huge barge to a Lockheed Martin facility in Redwood City, California, where it became a floating drydock for the construction and sea trials of the Sea Shadow, an experimental stealth ship being tested by the Navy. Sea trials of the Sea Shadow continued until 1986; the existence of the Sea Shadow was made public in 1993.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Fate

The HMB-1 currently sits in the Reserve fleet in Suisun Bay near San Francisco, California, USA easily visible from the I680 freeway, not far from where the Glomar Explorer once sat itself.