Maritime Knowledge Base
Browse questions and answers across marine machinery, merchant navy careers, shipboard operations and maritime glossary terms.
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Marine Machinery
Troubleshooting guides for pumps, boilers, purifiers, compressors and auxiliary systems.
Merchant Navy Careers
Questions about joining the merchant navy, exams, cadetships, ranks and sea-time.
Maritime Glossary
Plain-English definitions of shipping, engine-room, navigation and regulatory terms.
Shipboard Operations
Practical Q&A for watchkeeping, safety, maintenance routines and onboard documentation.
Results for "Draught"
What is a draught survey and how is cargo weight calculated?
A draught survey determines the weight of bulk cargo loaded or discharged by measuring the ship's draughts and calculating the change in its displacement.
Maritime GlossaryWhat is deadweight tonnage (DWT)?
Deadweight tonnage defined — the total weight a ship can carry — and how it differs from displacement and gross tonnage.
Maritime GlossaryWhat is ballast water and why is it managed?
What ballast water is, why ships carry it, and why it is now exchanged or treated under the Ballast Water Management Convention.
Shipboard OperationsWhat is the procedure for anchoring a ship?
Anchoring safely means preparing the gear, approaching the chosen spot slowly against wind and tide, letting go with controlled cable, and keeping an anchor watch.
Shipboard OperationsWhat are the four stages of passage planning (appraisal, planning, execution, monitoring)?
Passage planning follows four stages — appraisal, planning, execution and monitoring — that together prepare and carry out a safe voyage from berth to berth.
Shipboard OperationsHow do you read a nautical chart?
A nautical chart is a map of the sea showing depths, dangers, aids to navigation and the coastline, read using its scales of latitude and longitude, soundings, symbols and compass rose.
Shipboard OperationsWhat precautions does a ship take in heavy weather?
In heavy weather a ship reduces speed and adjusts course to ease its motion, secures everything for sea, manages ballast and stability, and guards against dangerous rolling.
Marine MachineryWhat is a governor on a marine engine and what does it do?
A governor automatically controls an engine's speed by adjusting the fuel supply to match the load, keeping the engine at the required revolutions or a generator at constant frequency.
Shipboard OperationsWhat is under keel clearance and why is it important?
Under keel clearance is the vertical gap between the lowest point of a ship's keel and the seabed — a safety margin that must be maintained to avoid grounding.
