Editor's Blog5 mins ago
Ships anchor
8 Answers
How does a ships anchor work? Does it dig into the bottom of the water? How do the ship people get it back out of the water? And if it's heavy enough to make the boat stop then how does the boat move when the anchor is on board??
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Blatantly nicked from Wikipedia:
An anchor is a heavy object, often made out of metal, that is used to attach a ship to the bottom of a body of water at a specific point. There are two primary classes of anchors�temporary and permanent. A permanent anchor is often called a mooring, and is rarely moved; it is quite possible the vessel cannot hoist it aboard but must hire a service to move or maintain it. A temporary anchor is usually carried by the vessel, and hoisted aboard whenever the vessel is under way; it is what most non-sailors mean when they refer to an anchor. A sea anchor is a related device used when the water depth makes using a mooring or temporary anchor impractical. The hole through which an anchor rope passes is known as a hawsepipe.
An anchor works by resisting the movement force of the vessel which is attached to it. There are two primary ways to do this � via sheer mass, and by "hooking" into the seabed. It may seem logical to think wind and currents are the largest forces an anchor must overcome, but actually the vertical movement of waves develop the largest loads, and modern anchors are designed to use a combination of technique and shape to resist all these forces.
An interesting element of anchor jargon is the term aweigh, which describes the anchor when it is hanging on the rope, not on the bottom; this is linked to the term to weigh anchor, meaning to lift the anchor from the sea bed, allowing the ship or boat to move. An anchor is described as aweigh when it has been broken out of the bottom and is being hauled up to be stowed. Aweigh should not be confused with under way, which describes a vessel which is not moored to a dock or anchored, whether or not it is moving through the water. Thus, a vessel can be under way (or underway) with no way on (i.e., not moving).
Hope this helps
An anchor is a heavy object, often made out of metal, that is used to attach a ship to the bottom of a body of water at a specific point. There are two primary classes of anchors�temporary and permanent. A permanent anchor is often called a mooring, and is rarely moved; it is quite possible the vessel cannot hoist it aboard but must hire a service to move or maintain it. A temporary anchor is usually carried by the vessel, and hoisted aboard whenever the vessel is under way; it is what most non-sailors mean when they refer to an anchor. A sea anchor is a related device used when the water depth makes using a mooring or temporary anchor impractical. The hole through which an anchor rope passes is known as a hawsepipe.
An anchor works by resisting the movement force of the vessel which is attached to it. There are two primary ways to do this � via sheer mass, and by "hooking" into the seabed. It may seem logical to think wind and currents are the largest forces an anchor must overcome, but actually the vertical movement of waves develop the largest loads, and modern anchors are designed to use a combination of technique and shape to resist all these forces.
An interesting element of anchor jargon is the term aweigh, which describes the anchor when it is hanging on the rope, not on the bottom; this is linked to the term to weigh anchor, meaning to lift the anchor from the sea bed, allowing the ship or boat to move. An anchor is described as aweigh when it has been broken out of the bottom and is being hauled up to be stowed. Aweigh should not be confused with under way, which describes a vessel which is not moored to a dock or anchored, whether or not it is moving through the water. Thus, a vessel can be under way (or underway) with no way on (i.e., not moving).
Hope this helps
The above does not answer your questions, good though it is.
The anchor does not dig into the bottom of the water, it digs into the sea bed, it is not the weight of the anchor that makes the ship stop, it is the design of the anchor, the anchor digs into the sea bed as the stopped ship drifts, when the ship wants to move it slowley moves forward and over the position of the anchor, this releases it from the sea bed and allows it to be winched back to the ship.
The anchor does not dig into the bottom of the water, it digs into the sea bed, it is not the weight of the anchor that makes the ship stop, it is the design of the anchor, the anchor digs into the sea bed as the stopped ship drifts, when the ship wants to move it slowley moves forward and over the position of the anchor, this releases it from the sea bed and allows it to be winched back to the ship.
Sorry I thought the second paragraph explained how an anchor worked !! Especially when it starts "An anchor works by....."
It points to here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchors
Which has more information.
Its another question that is easily answered by googling and/or looking up anchors on wikipedia or the like.
It points to here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchors
Which has more information.
Its another question that is easily answered by googling and/or looking up anchors on wikipedia or the like.
The secret of an anchor is the length of line, "warp" technically, which connects itto the boat. � times the water depth is a good start, but more (eg 5) if it's rough or blowing. The other great help is that the first n metres of this line (from the anchor) is usually heavy chain which makes the anchor lie flatter on the sea bed and allows the flukes or blade or spoon to dig in horizontally.
I must come in on you land lubbers. I have used all sorts of anchors, and yes, some we sailed back over and waited for them to break free from the sea bed. others had a trip device that collapsed the anchor,with a seperate rope, usually for use on rocky beds. the length of warp was very important in running tides, and sometimes we would run with the current for several hundred yards until the hook dug in. an anchor weighing only 15LBS can hold a 16 ft fishing boat if the warp is long enough. so, the anchor really weighs very little compared to the boat and crew.larger boats use a winch to reel in the anchor, but this is sometime dangerous for smaller fishing boats in rough seas, as the anchor may have dug in nicely, and as you winch, the front of the boat is pulled towards the anchor, and if the winch is powerful enough, could drag the boat under.
when i was in the navy i did countless nachorings in plymouth sound.
There are a number of different anchors, admiralty pattern and admiralty plan being the 2 most common.
The weight of the anchor is not what moors the ship. It's the anchor chain, or 'cable' as it's referred to in the RN. the amount of cable paid out (used) is dependant on the weather conditions. The anchor simply ensures that the cable remains on the seabed and the friction the cable causes keeps the ship at bay. The combination of both the anchor and the cable become very sturdy. as stated, the anchor does not stop the ship, the ship is stopped and slowly moved astrern (going backwards) when the anchor is dropped to ensure iot dopesn't pile on the seabed. this motion ensure the flukes of the anchor (the tips) dig in to the seabed.
When bringing in the anchor the cable would be slowly hauled onborard by a hydraulic capstan (a bollard/drum that rotates) and fed into the fo'castle of the ship into the cable locker. The Anchor is then brought in close to the hawes pipe nand the cable secured by lashings to p[revent it bouncing on the deck.
There are a number of different anchors, admiralty pattern and admiralty plan being the 2 most common.
The weight of the anchor is not what moors the ship. It's the anchor chain, or 'cable' as it's referred to in the RN. the amount of cable paid out (used) is dependant on the weather conditions. The anchor simply ensures that the cable remains on the seabed and the friction the cable causes keeps the ship at bay. The combination of both the anchor and the cable become very sturdy. as stated, the anchor does not stop the ship, the ship is stopped and slowly moved astrern (going backwards) when the anchor is dropped to ensure iot dopesn't pile on the seabed. this motion ensure the flukes of the anchor (the tips) dig in to the seabed.
When bringing in the anchor the cable would be slowly hauled onborard by a hydraulic capstan (a bollard/drum that rotates) and fed into the fo'castle of the ship into the cable locker. The Anchor is then brought in close to the hawes pipe nand the cable secured by lashings to p[revent it bouncing on the deck.
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