September 6, 2007: World's largest cargo ship

glatt · 09-07-2007, 07:27 PM

Anybody know what that pointy bit does? Why do modern ships have them? Seems counterintuitive. You would think a knife edge would slice through the water better and offer less resistance.

backwardhatclub · 09-07-2007, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glatt

Anybody know what that pointy bit does? Why do modern ships have them? Seems counterintuitive. You would think a knife edge would slice through the water better and offer less resistance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulbous_bow

glatt · 09-08-2007, 10:56 AM

Cool. Thanks for coming out of lurk mode to post that link. I wonder how the first people to build one thought of doing it? It seems like nobody understood how they worked until a few decades after they started making them.

xoxoxoBruce · 09-08-2007, 01:44 PM

This is the Jap Battleship Yamamoto, with it's 18 inch guns, sunk in 1945. I don't know why they were using a small bulbous bow, 40 years before the effects on speed and efficiency were really understood. Maybe for ramming whales.

dar512 · 09-08-2007, 03:55 PM

Does that work for whales too? Because thats what I thought of when I saw this pic:

09-08-2007, 01:44 PM	#4
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	This is the Jap Battleship Yamamoto, with it's 18 inch guns, sunk in 1945. I don't know why they were using a small bulbous bow, 40 years before the effects on speed and efficiency were really understood. Maybe for ramming whales. Attached Images __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

09-08-2007, 03:55 PM	#5
dar512 dar512 is now Pete Zicato Join Date: May 2003 Location: Chicago suburb Posts: 4,968	Does that work for whales too? Because thats what I thought of when I saw this pic: Attached Images __________________ "Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain." -- Friedrich Schiller

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09-07-2007, 07:27 PM	#1
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	Anybody know what that pointy bit does? Why do modern ships have them? Seems counterintuitive. You would think a knife edge would slice through the water better and offer less resistance.

09-08-2007, 10:56 AM	#3
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	Cool. Thanks for coming out of lurk mode to post that link. I wonder how the first people to build one thought of doing it? It seems like nobody understood how they worked until a few decades after they started making them.

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