Life aboard a nuclear powered submarine

SAN DIEGO - The USS Jefferson City, stationed at Naval Base Point Loma in California, recently left on a six-month deployment.

She is an important, silent weapon in the Navy's Pacific Fleet.

Click the video player on the left for a look inside the USS Jefferson City.

"A fast attack submarine is a hunter killer," said Edward Anderson, Commander, USS Jefferson City. "We go fast, we're quiet and our job is to go find other people and hold them at risk and be able to attack them if we need."

When the Jefferson City sets sail, she leaves armed and ready for war.

Brian McDonough, a Senior Chief aboard the submarine says the submarine carries "Mark 48 torpedoes, ad-cap torpedoes, advanced capability, and Tomahawk cruise missiles."

For the sailors and officers alike, life at sea on board a nuclear-powered submarine is anything but an ocean cruise.

"For the most part, you know, you got six hours of watch and you take 12 hours of off time, where you use to fix things, do your workout, stuff along those lines and training," said Ryan Dirks, a Petty Officer on the USS Jefferson City. "then you get, usually, six hours of sleep before you come back on watch again, so we live an 18 hour day."

And a submarine is no place for the claustrophobic.

Sailor on board the Jefferson City sleep in racks stacked three high. Personal space is limited to a four-inch high storage locker - or rack pan - underneath their bedding. McDonough likened it to "sleeping in a coffin."

The crew's mess area is also small, but still manages to feed 120 sailors four meals a day.

The Jefferson City's Commander made no attempt to hide his pride in his crew.

"Everyday at sea, for six months, they're going to go about doing, very professionally, something that can become very boring," said Anderson. "But they're going to do it in an incredibly professional manner and they're not really going to ask for anything special on the other end of that."

There are 98 crew members and 12 officers on board the USS Jefferson City.

The submarine is expected to return from its deployment next March.