Beam (nautical)
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The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point, or at the mid-point of its length. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship (or boat), the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position. Typical length-to-beam ratios for small sailboats are from 2:1 (dinghies to trailerable sailboats around 20 ft/6 m) to 5:1 (racing sailboats over 30 ft/10 m). Large ships have widely varying beam ratios, some as large as 20:1. Rowing shells designed for flatwater racing may have length to beam ratios as high as 30:1 [1], while a coracle has a ratio of almost 1:1 - it is nearly circular.
I have found as a general rule of thumb that most monohulls from 6m (20') to 250m (820') have a beam that can be very roughly calculated by the following forumla:
Beam = LOA (Length Overall) in feet to the power of 2/3
Some examples -
For an 8.23m (27') long yacht: the cube root is 3, and 3 squared is 9. The beam will normally be about 2.75m (9').
For a 19.5m (64') long yacht: the cube root is 4, and 4 squared is 16. The beam will normally be about 4.9m (16').
For a 226m (741') long ship: the cube root is 9, and 9 squared is 81. The beam will normally be about 24.7m (81') e.g. Seawaymax.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Hayler, William B.; Keever, John M. (2003). American Merchant Seaman's Manual. Cornell Maritime Pr. ISBN 0-87033-549-9.
- Turpin, Edward A.; McEwen, William A. (1980). Merchant Marine Officers' Handbook, 4th, Centreville, MD: Cornell Maritime Press. ISBN 0-87038-056-X.
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