Hull (watercraft)

A hull is the watertight body of a vessel that displaces water and supports its load. Its shape and construction influence buoyancy, stability, speed, and seaworthiness.

Buoyancy: The upward force exerted by a fluid on an immersed object, equal to the weight of fluid displaced. The hull floats because it displaces enough water for buoyant force to balance the vessel's weight.
Waterline: The line where a vessel's hull meets the surface of the water when afloat. It marks the boundary between the immersed hull and the portion exposed to air.
Displacement hull: A hull that moves through water by displacing a volume of water roughly equal to its weight. It is the conventional hull form whose speed is strongly affected by wave-making resistance.
Icebreaker: A vessel built to break or clear ice so ships can travel through ice-covered waters. Its reinforced hull and bow are shaped to withstand and ride onto ice.
RMS Titanic: A British passenger liner that sank in the North Atlantic in 1912 after striking an iceberg. Its flooding exposed how compartment arrangement and hull damage interact in a large ship.
Hydrostatics: The study of fluids at rest and the forces they exert on immersed bodies. It explains how hull volume and shape govern floating equilibrium.
Keel: The principal structural member running along the bottom of a vessel, usually from bow toward stern. It forms a central reference and structural foundation in many hull designs.
Planing hull: A hull designed to rise partly above the water at speed, reducing the area in contact with it. Unlike displacement hulls, it can gain speed by riding on dynamic lift.
Submarine: A watercraft designed to operate underwater, often for extended periods. Its pressure-resistant hull must withstand forces far beyond those on surface vessels.
USS Monitor: A Union ironclad warship whose low hull and rotating gun turret fought at Hampton Roads in 1862. Its low-profile hull represented a radical departure from conventional high-sided warships.

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