Sea anchor
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A sea anchor, used to stabilize a boat in heavy weather, anchors not to the sea floor but to the sea itself, as a kind of brake. Usually shaped like a parachute or cone, it is fed out from the ship or boat so that it fills under water; floating sea anchors intended to drag on the surface of the water have also been used. A long line (typically between ten and fifteen boat lengths) is attached to the sea anchor and the bow of the boat or ship. The boat, though blown by the wind, is slowed down by the sea anchor, and this allows the boat to ride out the storm by keeping the hull in line with the wind and perpendicular to waves. Another basic technique for surviving bad weather is heaving to.
(According to the article cited below, the term heaving-to covers several techniques which allow to leave a boat without active steering in heavy weather. In traditional terminology "heave-to" is the same as "heave-to under reduced sail" in the article, and the common term for the various techniques explained in the article is "storm tactics".)
