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JAXAshby
 
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over the knee, did you REALLY intend to say that waves on the bow of a ship can
blow out the windows on the stern?

If that is not what you intended, just why did you say it?

geesh.

From: otnmbrd
Date: 2/4/2005 8:59 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
Message-id: t

renewontime dot com wrote:


Hi Roger,

I'm guessing your asking why one ship might be more prone to causing
seasickness than another?

There are alot of determining factors, to name a few (I'm sure there are
others, these are the ones that come to mind):

Seas - The most obvious reason. The seas off the Washington / Oregon coast


during the winter is about as bad as it gets. Gales hit every three days
(like clockwork) and the seas are big and steep. I've been in bigger seas,


but these seemed more uncomfortable.


Seas and how a particular ship/boat handles them, vary as to what feels
good or bad, depending on size, load condition, swell period, etc.


Vessel Motion - A vessel's size, obviously, has a big effect on it's motion


at sea. Additionally, a more stable vessel will roll faster, thus making
the motion more uncomfortable. snip


Couple all this with where are you working/quartered on the vessel.
Surprisingly, I've noted that "accommodation" forward, tends to affect
more people, than "accom" aft.

BTW, Bilge Keels are great additions .... funny part is, that their best
reduction in rolling ( note I said "rolling" ) is a mere 10%.
As for blowing out windows/portholes.... heading is immaterial, vessel
size is immaterial.... the right sea at the right moment, now, THAT'S
important.

otn








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renewontime dot com
 
Posts: n/a
Default

BTW, Bilge Keels are great additions .... funny part is, that their best
reduction in rolling ( note I said "rolling" ) is a mere 10%.


The way I understand it, bilge keels -increase- the rolling period (the time
from heeling on one side to the other), and I'd guess that 10% is about
right. I've never worked (or sailed for that matter) on a cruise ship
(well... not entirely true... I was a cadet aboard a retired US Lines ship),
but I understand their "active stabilizers" do a better job at keeping the
vessel flat.

Incidently (and we're way off topic), the most comfortable riding ship I
ever worked on was the RV Kilo Moana, a SWATH (Submerged Waterplane Attached
Twin Hull). You could literally leave your cup of coffee on a table in 20
foot seas and it wouldn't budge. SWATH's are actually -more- comfortable
with seas on the beam, we frequently lied abeam to do scientific work.

As for blowing out windows/portholes.... heading is immaterial, vessel
size is immaterial.... the right sea at the right moment, now, THAT'S
important.


Good point. Mother Nature is rarely nice enough to give us seas from
only -one- direction. Depending on your vessel's heading, your wake can
reflect or refract off the side of your hull, interact with a sea and send
it in nearly any direction at all.

On the ships I've served on, all portholes up to the main deck had
"deadlights", heavy, solid metal covers for when the weather gets nasty.
When it got nasty, we just dogged them down. Never had one fail (not to say
it isn't possible though).

But things are probably different on the modern cruise ships. I've berthed
near a number of cruise ships, and one I remember in particular had "sliding
glass doors" to cabins above the main deck! You wonder what the designer
was thinking...


All the best,

--
Paul

=-----------------------------------=
renewontime dot com
FREE email reminder service for licensed mariners
http://www.renewontime.com
=-----------------------------------=


  #3   Report Post  
Sebastian Miles
 
Posts: n/a
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This is very true. Although I have never experienced that extreme I was
raised sailing in the caribean. It is all a question of good pumping,
semi-sealed boat and a tough crew and you can withstand even a hurricane.
The biggest I think ive even been was on 35+knots of wind with seas around
10 feet(Take notice that this is actually from sealine up or down, therefore
the waves look over 20 feet tall at times, my father made the slight mistake
of not understanding this when reading the pilot charts, and we were a bit
shocked for our first 400 mile open sea trip). We were running only on a
fully reefed main breaking our maximum speed. Take notice though, this was
only on an old Catalina 30(number 112 I think, which is on sale now). But we
have raced her and sailed her enough that she could withstand anything we
throw at her.

"renewontime dot com" wrote in message
...
Questions like these have always given me a good chuckle ;-) Anyone that
has spent any amount of time at sea or on the waterfront will have plenty

of
stories that relate to this. I'll spare you from hearing all of my "sea
stories"...

Having driven one ship in an Atlantic hurricane, another in a Pacific
hurricane, a research ship off the coasts of Washington and Oregon during
the entire months of November and December (first time I "lost my cookies"
in over 30 years at sea), and numerous yachts and ships in gales, I have

two
bits of wisdom to pass on:

1. Nearly every ship (and most yachts for that matter) can withstand a

heck
of alot more lousey weather than the crew aboard her can. I know

personally
of numerous stories of people abandoning their yacht because the weather

was
just "too bad", only to have their yacht later found completely intact
without a bit of damage.

2. If you're on a 45 foot yacht and the weather is severe enough for 50
foot seas... you ain't gonna be sleeping much... ;-)

--
Paul

=-----------------------------------=
renewontime dot com
FREE email reminder service for licensed mariners
http://www.renewontime.com
=-----------------------------------=






  #4   Report Post  
Rich Hampel
 
Posts: n/a
Default

What will happen to a 45ft. boat being hit by a 50 ft. wave ...... Not
much if the wave isnt steep as the boat will simply lift over the wave.
The *steepness* of the wave is important; and, It all depends o n the
posiition of the boat vs. the oncoming wave, with being broadside to
the wave and steepness of the wave (and whether its breaking or not.)
that is thw worst case. Breaking waves (the tops of the waves sliding
down the front of the wave in a big 'show' of air filled foam are the
'nasties' that break boats. If the boat is moving, the expertise of the
helmsman (able to dodge breaking waves by steering around them, etc. is
vitally important as is the 'stability' or sea-worthniness of the boat.
A 50 foot wave is no big deal if it isnt a 'steep wave'. An
approximate 25-30 ft. wave if steep enough can easily roll a 45ft boat
- depends on if its broadside, etc.

The inbuilt stabilty is the factor of how a boat survives adverse
waves; a lightweight broad beam boat will tend to be vastly more
unstable than a heavy, deep, narrow boat ... the lightweight boat
having sometimes the advantage of being able to sail away from bad
weather faster than a heavy boat.

When the sea state is dangerous there are techniques that can be used
to survive --- such as using a parachute anchor and holding the bow
about 45 degrees to the oncoming waves. The boat will 'slip' slightly
backwards and the turbulance of the slip on the surface will cause the
waves to 'break' before they hit the boat, etc.

Its not the height of the waves but the steepness of the waves and
especially if the wave is so steep that the top of wave is 'breaking'
that is so dangerous.

hope this helps.


. net,
wrote:

I saw the news earlier this week about the 591' ship
Explorer with 681 college students on board getting
hit by a 50' wave.

What will happen if a 45' sailboat gets hit by the
same wave ?

Does it make a difference which way the boat is facing
when it gets hit by a wave this big ? If it does then
which way is the best way ?

I was told that a good boat can correct itself even if
a big wave turns it upside down. So can you just strap
yourself to your bed and go to sleep ?

Are the windows likely to break and let the water in
so that the boat can sink after getting hit many times ?

What else do you think can happen ?

Thanks for your help.

  #5   Report Post  
Bryan Glover
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Following is from www.seriesdrogue.com
and I scoff and mock all you scared weard little guys,like Jax, who
will no doubt cry foul, because someone with a commercial interest in
this subject dares make a post.

Worst Case Breaking Wave Strike
I have chosen the case of the Winston Churchill in the 1998 Sydney
Hobart race as an example of a worst case breaking wave. The Churchill
was a classic wooden sloop of 25 tons displacement and 55 ft. LOA. Of
the experienced crew of 9, two perished in the accident.

From "Fatal Storm' by Mundle. "A sea came out of nowhere", said
Stanley, " I could feel it from where I was in the aft coach house. It
picked the boat up and rolled it down its face - 25 tons of boat- into
the trough at a 45 degree angle. It was like hitting a brick wall when
we hit the bottom". A crewman below reports that a sudden motion of
the ship picked him up and threw him 7 ft. He observed that 8 ft of
the heavy timber bulwark and planking had been torn off near the
leeward shrouds, and the ribs were exposed. . The boat filled rapidly
and sank in a matter of minutes.

This is an unusual type of accident. Although there are records of
many storm casualties, I am aware of no documented instance of a well
found yacht of the size and reputation of the Churchill and crewed by
an ample group of expert sailors, suffering such catastrophic
structural damage that it sank in a matter of minutes. How could this
possibly happen? The severity or the storm was extreme but by no means
unprecedented. There are numerous reports of large sailing yachts
surviving hurricanes of the same general magnitude. Although yachts
have been lost in such storms I have been able to find no record of
comparable structural damage.

History shows that the probability of a yacht being capsized and
damaged by a large breaking wave is strongly influenced by the
displacement of the vessel. Yachts under 35 ft. have a poor history
while yachts over 50 ft are rarely capsized and damaged.

The nature and extent of the damage incurred by the Churchill is also
most unusual. The vessel was designed by Sparkman and Stevens and was
maintained to the highest standard. Yet the heavy timber bulwark was
shattered, the planking gone and the ribs exposed.

There is no question of the fact that the leeward bow of the boat was
driven into solid green water at an extremely high velocity, far
higher than would be expected in a simple contact with a breaking
wave. We now have a technical understanding of how such a destructive
force can be generated. Observations from many experienced sailors on
a number of the SH yachts provide data which permit a sound
engineering analysis of the performance of the waves and the boats in
the race.

Water forces are applied to the hull of a yacht by two means, buoyancy
forces and dynamic forces. Buoyancy forces are the familiar pressure
forces which keep the boat afloat. They never reach sufficient
magnitude to damage a well found yacht.

Dynamic forces result from the motion of the boat relative to the
water, either as a result of the boat velocity or the water velocity
due to wave motion. A speeding power boat can be destroyed by striking
solid water. Similarly, a sailing yacht can be destroyed if it is
accelerated up to a high speed by a breaking wave strike and then
impacts solid green water in the preceding trough. This is the fate
that befell the Churchill.

To understand this phenomenon we must consider the concept of energy.
A moving car or boat has energy. This form of energy is called kinetic
energy. Kinetic energy is measured in foot-pounds. Kinetic energy can
be calculated by the formula KE=1/2 (w/g) times (v squared). Where w
is the weight of the car or boat, g is the acceleration of gravity
(32.2 ft/sec) and v is the velocity in ft./sec.

Thus a 3,000 lb. weight traveling at 30 mph (44 ft./sec.) would have a
kinetic energy of 90,000 foot pounds. Now...and this is very important
to our understanding of the Churchill disaster...if the moving vehicle
strikes an object, the kinetic energy determines the severity of the
collision and the extent of the damage.

In addition to energy due to motion, a vehicle can possess energy due
to height. This type of energy, also measured in foot pounds, is
calculated simply as the height times the weight. A 3000 lb car
hoisted to a height of 50 ft. would have 150,000 foot pounds of
energy. If dropped from 50 ft to a solid surface, the car would
dissipate this energy in damage. If the car was compressed by 2 ft.
the average force during the impact would be 75,000 pounds. If it
landed on its top and compressed four feet (because it was softer) the
average force would be 37,500 lbs. .These numbers (compression and
force) are not precise but the product must be the same to satisfy the
energy balance.
more of the same at my site
regards
Bryan

Rich Hampel wrote in message ...
What will happen to a 45ft. boat being hit by a 50 ft. wave ...... Not
much if the wave isnt steep as the boat will simply lift over the wave.
The *steepness* of the wave is important; and, It all depends o n the
posiition of the boat vs. the oncoming wave, with being broadside to
the wave and steepness of the wave (and whether its breaking or not.)
that is thw worst case. Breaking waves (the tops of the waves sliding
down the front of the wave in a big 'show' of air filled foam are the
'nasties' that break boats. If the boat is moving, the expertise of the
helmsman (able to dodge breaking waves by steering around them, etc. is
vitally important as is the 'stability' or sea-worthniness of the boat.
A 50 foot wave is no big deal if it isnt a 'steep wave'. An
approximate 25-30 ft. wave if steep enough can easily roll a 45ft boat
- depends on if its broadside, etc.

The inbuilt stabilty is the factor of how a boat survives adverse
waves; a lightweight broad beam boat will tend to be vastly more
unstable than a heavy, deep, narrow boat ... the lightweight boat
having sometimes the advantage of being able to sail away from bad
weather faster than a heavy boat.

When the sea state is dangerous there are techniques that can be used
to survive --- such as using a parachute anchor and holding the bow
about 45 degrees to the oncoming waves. The boat will 'slip' slightly
backwards and the turbulance of the slip on the surface will cause the
waves to 'break' before they hit the boat, etc.

Its not the height of the waves but the steepness of the waves and
especially if the wave is so steep that the top of wave is 'breaking'
that is so dangerous.

hope this helps.


. net,
wrote:

I saw the news earlier this week about the 591' ship
Explorer with 681 college students on board getting
hit by a 50' wave.

What will happen if a 45' sailboat gets hit by the
same wave ?

Does it make a difference which way the boat is facing
when it gets hit by a wave this big ? If it does then
which way is the best way ?

I was told that a good boat can correct itself even if
a big wave turns it upside down. So can you just strap
yourself to your bed and go to sleep ?

Are the windows likely to break and let the water in
so that the boat can sink after getting hit many times ?

What else do you think can happen ?

Thanks for your help.



  #6   Report Post  
JAXAshby
 
Posts: n/a
Default

a.) no mention is made of a "breaking" wave, and

b.) it an amateur's recollection of an accident.

but nice try. stew ped, but nice try anyway.

From: (Bryan Glover)
Date: 2/8/2005 12:45 A.M. Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

Following is from
www.seriesdrogue.com
and I scoff and mock all you scared weard little guys,like Jax, who
will no doubt cry foul, because someone with a commercial interest in
this subject dares make a post.

Worst Case Breaking Wave Strike
I have chosen the case of the Winston Churchill in the 1998 Sydney
Hobart race as an example of a worst case breaking wave. The Churchill
was a classic wooden sloop of 25 tons displacement and 55 ft. LOA. Of
the experienced crew of 9, two perished in the accident.

From "Fatal Storm' by Mundle. "A sea came out of nowhere", said
Stanley, " I could feel it from where I was in the aft coach house. It
picked the boat up and rolled it down its face - 25 tons of boat- into
the trough at a 45 degree angle. It was like hitting a brick wall when
we hit the bottom". A crewman below reports that a sudden motion of
the ship picked him up and threw him 7 ft. He observed that 8 ft of
the heavy timber bulwark and planking had been torn off near the
leeward shrouds, and the ribs were exposed. . The boat filled rapidly
and sank in a matter of minutes.

This is an unusual type of accident. Although there are records of
many storm casualties, I am aware of no documented instance of a well
found yacht of the size and reputation of the Churchill and crewed by
an ample group of expert sailors, suffering such catastrophic
structural damage that it sank in a matter of minutes. How could this
possibly happen? The severity or the storm was extreme but by no means
unprecedented. There are numerous reports of large sailing yachts
surviving hurricanes of the same general magnitude. Although yachts
have been lost in such storms I have been able to find no record of
comparable structural damage.

History shows that the probability of a yacht being capsized and
damaged by a large breaking wave is strongly influenced by the
displacement of the vessel. Yachts under 35 ft. have a poor history
while yachts over 50 ft are rarely capsized and damaged.

The nature and extent of the damage incurred by the Churchill is also
most unusual. The vessel was designed by Sparkman and Stevens and was
maintained to the highest standard. Yet the heavy timber bulwark was
shattered, the planking gone and the ribs exposed.

There is no question of the fact that the leeward bow of the boat was
driven into solid green water at an extremely high velocity, far
higher than would be expected in a simple contact with a breaking
wave. We now have a technical understanding of how such a destructive
force can be generated. Observations from many experienced sailors on
a number of the SH yachts provide data which permit a sound
engineering analysis of the performance of the waves and the boats in
the race.

Water forces are applied to the hull of a yacht by two means, buoyancy
forces and dynamic forces. Buoyancy forces are the familiar pressure
forces which keep the boat afloat. They never reach sufficient
magnitude to damage a well found yacht.

Dynamic forces result from the motion of the boat relative to the
water, either as a result of the boat velocity or the water velocity
due to wave motion. A speeding power boat can be destroyed by striking
solid water. Similarly, a sailing yacht can be destroyed if it is
accelerated up to a high speed by a breaking wave strike and then
impacts solid green water in the preceding trough. This is the fate
that befell the Churchill.

To understand this phenomenon we must consider the concept of energy.
A moving car or boat has energy. This form of energy is called kinetic
energy. Kinetic energy is measured in foot-pounds. Kinetic energy can
be calculated by the formula KE=1/2 (w/g) times (v squared). Where w
is the weight of the car or boat, g is the acceleration of gravity
(32.2 ft/sec) and v is the velocity in ft./sec.

Thus a 3,000 lb. weight traveling at 30 m



  #8   Report Post  
Rich Hampel
 
Posts: n/a
Default

It would be interesting to get the scantlings of the Churchill to
reconstruct a forensic analysis of the forces that were involved.
Without knowing the exact structural schedule, the dissipation of
impact is always a 'guess' ... but some value of 'e' between zero and
one. It would be fairly easy to back-calculate such values and arrive
at least the momentum value. Especially if the boat was constructed to
a 'Lloyds scantling rule' the calcs. would be fairly easy.


In article , Bryan
Glover wrote:

Following is from www.seriesdrogue.com
and I scoff and mock all you scared weard little guys,like Jax, who
will no doubt cry foul, because someone with a commercial interest in
this subject dares make a post.

Worst Case Breaking Wave Strike
I have chosen the case of the Winston Churchill in the 1998 Sydney
Hobart race as an example of a worst case breaking wave. The Churchill
was a classic wooden sloop of 25 tons displacement and 55 ft. LOA. Of
the experienced crew of 9, two perished in the accident.

From "Fatal Storm' by Mundle. "A sea came out of nowhere", said
Stanley, " I could feel it from where I was in the aft coach house. It
picked the boat up and rolled it down its face - 25 tons of boat- into
the trough at a 45 degree angle. It was like hitting a brick wall when
we hit the bottom". A crewman below reports that a sudden motion of
the ship picked him up and threw him 7 ft. He observed that 8 ft of
the heavy timber bulwark and planking had been torn off near the
leeward shrouds, and the ribs were exposed. . The boat filled rapidly
and sank in a matter of minutes.

This is an unusual type of accident. Although there are records of
many storm casualties, I am aware of no documented instance of a well
found yacht of the size and reputation of the Churchill and crewed by
an ample group of expert sailors, suffering such catastrophic
structural damage that it sank in a matter of minutes. How could this
possibly happen? The severity or the storm was extreme but by no means
unprecedented. There are numerous reports of large sailing yachts
surviving hurricanes of the same general magnitude. Although yachts
have been lost in such storms I have been able to find no record of
comparable structural damage.

History shows that the probability of a yacht being capsized and
damaged by a large breaking wave is strongly influenced by the
displacement of the vessel. Yachts under 35 ft. have a poor history
while yachts over 50 ft are rarely capsized and damaged.

The nature and extent of the damage incurred by the Churchill is also
most unusual. The vessel was designed by Sparkman and Stevens and was
maintained to the highest standard. Yet the heavy timber bulwark was
shattered, the planking gone and the ribs exposed.

There is no question of the fact that the leeward bow of the boat was
driven into solid green water at an extremely high velocity, far
higher than would be expected in a simple contact with a breaking
wave. We now have a technical understanding of how such a destructive
force can be generated. Observations from many experienced sailors on
a number of the SH yachts provide data which permit a sound
engineering analysis of the performance of the waves and the boats in
the race.

Water forces are applied to the hull of a yacht by two means, buoyancy
forces and dynamic forces. Buoyancy forces are the familiar pressure
forces which keep the boat afloat. They never reach sufficient
magnitude to damage a well found yacht.

Dynamic forces result from the motion of the boat relative to the
water, either as a result of the boat velocity or the water velocity
due to wave motion. A speeding power boat can be destroyed by striking
solid water. Similarly, a sailing yacht can be destroyed if it is
accelerated up to a high speed by a breaking wave strike and then
impacts solid green water in the preceding trough. This is the fate
that befell the Churchill.

To understand this phenomenon we must consider the concept of energy.
A moving car or boat has energy. This form of energy is called kinetic
energy. Kinetic energy is measured in foot-pounds. Kinetic energy can
be calculated by the formula KE=1/2 (w/g) times (v squared). Where w
is the weight of the car or boat, g is the acceleration of gravity
(32.2 ft/sec) and v is the velocity in ft./sec.

Thus a 3,000 lb. weight traveling at 30 mph (44 ft./sec.) would have a
kinetic energy of 90,000 foot pounds. Now...and this is very important
to our understanding of the Churchill disaster...if the moving vehicle
strikes an object, the kinetic energy determines the severity of the
collision and the extent of the damage.

In addition to energy due to motion, a vehicle can possess energy due
to height. This type of energy, also measured in foot pounds, is
calculated simply as the height times the weight. A 3000 lb car
hoisted to a height of 50 ft. would have 150,000 foot pounds of
energy. If dropped from 50 ft to a solid surface, the car would
dissipate this energy in damage. If the car was compressed by 2 ft.
the average force during the impact would be 75,000 pounds. If it
landed on its top and compressed four feet (because it was softer) the
average force would be 37,500 lbs. .These numbers (compression and
force) are not precise but the product must be the same to satisfy the
energy balance.
more of the same at my site
regards
Bryan

Rich Hampel wrote in message
...
What will happen to a 45ft. boat being hit by a 50 ft. wave ...... Not
much if the wave isnt steep as the boat will simply lift over the wave.
The *steepness* of the wave is important; and, It all depends o n the
posiition of the boat vs. the oncoming wave, with being broadside to
the wave and steepness of the wave (and whether its breaking or not.)
that is thw worst case. Breaking waves (the tops of the waves sliding
down the front of the wave in a big 'show' of air filled foam are the
'nasties' that break boats. If the boat is moving, the expertise of the
helmsman (able to dodge breaking waves by steering around them, etc. is
vitally important as is the 'stability' or sea-worthniness of the boat.
A 50 foot wave is no big deal if it isnt a 'steep wave'. An
approximate 25-30 ft. wave if steep enough can easily roll a 45ft boat
- depends on if its broadside, etc.

The inbuilt stabilty is the factor of how a boat survives adverse
waves; a lightweight broad beam boat will tend to be vastly more
unstable than a heavy, deep, narrow boat ... the lightweight boat
having sometimes the advantage of being able to sail away from bad
weather faster than a heavy boat.

When the sea state is dangerous there are techniques that can be used
to survive --- such as using a parachute anchor and holding the bow
about 45 degrees to the oncoming waves. The boat will 'slip' slightly
backwards and the turbulance of the slip on the surface will cause the
waves to 'break' before they hit the boat, etc.

Its not the height of the waves but the steepness of the waves and
especially if the wave is so steep that the top of wave is 'breaking'
that is so dangerous.

hope this helps.


. net,
wrote:

I saw the news earlier this week about the 591' ship
Explorer with 681 college students on board getting
hit by a 50' wave.

What will happen if a 45' sailboat gets hit by the
same wave ?

Does it make a difference which way the boat is facing
when it gets hit by a wave this big ? If it does then
which way is the best way ?

I was told that a good boat can correct itself even if
a big wave turns it upside down. So can you just strap
yourself to your bed and go to sleep ?

Are the windows likely to break and let the water in
so that the boat can sink after getting hit many times ?

What else do you think can happen ?

Thanks for your help.

  #9   Report Post  
DSK
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Bryan Glover wrote:
....
will no doubt cry foul, because someone with a commercial interest in
this subject dares make a post.


I dunno, your post does seem too blatantly commercial to me.

Worst Case Breaking Wave Strike
I have chosen the case of the Winston Churchill in the 1998 Sydney
Hobart race as an example of a worst case breaking wave. The Churchill
was a classic wooden sloop of 25 tons displacement and 55 ft. LOA. Of
the experienced crew of 9, two perished in the accident.

From "Fatal Storm' by Mundle. "A sea came out of nowhere", said
Stanley, " I could feel it from where I was in the aft coach house. It
picked the boat up and rolled it down its face - 25 tons of boat- into
the trough at a 45 degree angle. It was like hitting a brick wall when
we hit the bottom". A crewman below reports that a sudden motion of
the ship picked him up and threw him 7 ft. He observed that 8 ft of
the heavy timber bulwark and planking had been torn off near the
leeward shrouds, and the ribs were exposed. . The boat filled rapidly
and sank in a matter of minutes.

This is an unusual type of accident. Although there are records of
many storm casualties, I am aware of no documented instance of a well
found yacht of the size and reputation of the Churchill and crewed by
an ample group of expert sailors, suffering such catastrophic
structural damage that it sank in a matter of minutes. How could this
possibly happen?


A couple of ways, none of them provable. IMHO part of why the Churchill
sank was repeated stressing & flexing of the hull, and partial failure
of her fastenings. Also that the extreme stress on the rig helped open
up the hull as she went down that wave. Once there was any opening at
all, the hydraulic force of the water ripped big chunk of planking off.

Basically, in these kinds of conditions, the boat is getting dropped on
her side every wave. Or partly on her deck. Picture this, picking up
your boat 30 feet or more in the air, then tilting it a bit past 90 and
dropping it. Bad, eh? Not as bad as doing this same thing for hundreds
of reps, interstpersed with having trainloads of water dropped on the
boat from height.


Considering that Navy cruisers have been sunk in typhoons, and
battleships taken severe damage, it's a little much IMHO to expect a
small sailboat to withstand anything the ocean can throw. *No* tactics
or special gear or design type is going to help. It's a case of simply
don't be there when it happens.


History shows that the probability of a yacht being capsized and
damaged by a large breaking wave is strongly influenced by the
displacement of the vessel. Yachts under 35 ft. have a poor history
while yachts over 50 ft are rarely capsized and damaged.


I think there's more than this factor at work here, although youo're
right about bigger = better. Bigger boats are also faster and tend to
get less exposure to the extreme conditions, and they are able to take
active measures to avoid the worst long after the smaller boats have
switched to total survival mode.



To understand this phenomenon we must consider the concept of energy.
A moving car or boat has energy. This form of energy is called kinetic
energy. Kinetic energy is measured in foot-pounds. Kinetic energy can
be calculated by the formula KE=1/2 (w/g) times (v squared). Where w
is the weight of the car or boat, g is the acceleration of gravity
(32.2 ft/sec) and v is the velocity in ft./sec.

Thus a 3,000 lb. weight traveling at 30 mph (44 ft./sec.) would have a
kinetic energy of 90,000 foot pounds.


To put this in perspective, this is roughly equivalent to stopping ten
rounds from a .50 cal machine gun. Destructive, nyet?

... Now...and this is very important
to our understanding of the Churchill disaster...if the moving vehicle
strikes an object, the kinetic energy determines the severity of the
collision and the extent of the damage.

In addition to energy due to motion, a vehicle can possess energy due
to height. This type of energy, also measured in foot pounds, is
calculated simply as the height times the weight. A 3000 lb car
hoisted to a height of 50 ft. would have 150,000 foot pounds of
energy. If dropped from 50 ft to a solid surface, the car would
dissipate this energy in damage. If the car was compressed by 2 ft.
the average force during the impact would be 75,000 pounds. If it
landed on its top and compressed four feet (because it was softer) the
average force would be 37,500 lbs.


That's not quite right, the force due to deceleration isn't linear.
Comparing a braking distance of 2' to 4', the energy is less than
half... about a third would be closer...


Rich Hampel wrote:
It would be interesting to get the scantlings of the Churchill to
reconstruct a forensic analysis of the forces that were involved.
Without knowing the exact structural schedule, the dissipation of
impact is always a 'guess' ... but some value of 'e' between zero and
one. It would be fairly easy to back-calculate such values and arrive
at least the momentum value. Especially if the boat was constructed to
a 'Lloyds scantling rule' the calcs. would be fairly easy.


Yes, but it would be impossible to determine exactly how much of the
destruction was due to pure force and how much was due to even slightly
degraded structural integrity. Hidden rot, bad fastenings, possibly some
modification or addition that affected the structure... plank-built
wooden boats are really complicated and every single piece is supported
by every single other piece.

The Churchill was said to be very well maintained and recently rebuilt,
but we have no way of knowing her actual, true, material condition at
the time of the accident.

Personally, I don't think it would matter. As I said earlier, it's my
belief that *no* structure built by man can stand up to the ocean at
it's worst.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King

  #10   Report Post  
DSK
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Bryan Glover wrote:
....
will no doubt cry foul, because someone with a commercial interest in
this subject dares make a post.


DSK wrote:
I dunno, your post does seem too blatantly commercial to me.


CORRECTION: Bryan, I meant to say "Your post does NOT seem too blatantly
commercial to me." I apologize for the error, sometimes my fingers type
faster than the computer can think.

DSK



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