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Monadnock Guide
Council of Elders
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
March 14 2005
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winglo
Deerslayer
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
July 13 2007
Status: offline
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 Posted - September 25 2010 : 12:40:45 PM
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| Wait, I have a great interest in the Titanic. I want to make sure I understand what this article is saying. Is it saying two different things. . .first that there was an error in steering and that the Titanic was steered INTO the iceberg? (Why did it only give it a glancing blow, then?) And is this article also saying that after the Titanic hit the iceberg it continued to speed forward and this made the catastrophe worse? How would continuing to speed forward make the problem worse? They didn't have enough lifeboats, no matter where it sank, right? |
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Monadnock Guide
Council of Elders
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
March 14 2005
Status: offline
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Posted - September 25 2010 : 2:40:14 PM
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Winglo, - by continuing forward under steam - it increased the water pressure against the outside of the already damaged hull. How much actual damage or increased water is debatable - no way in the world to prove it. - Titanic actually was carrying more life boats & rafts than required by law - at that time. The number of life craft carried was determined by tonnage, not passengers. After this disaster that rule changed.
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What REALLY saved the day was that it was "flat calm" - which is somewhat unusual for the North Atlantic in April. More could have been saved, - many life boats were only about half-full at most. People didn't want to leave a large ship and get into a life boat until it was too late.
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At 23:40, while sailing about 400 miles (640 km) south of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, lookouts Fredrick Fleet and Reginald Lee spotted a large iceberg directly ahead of the ship. Fleet sounded the ship's bell three times and telephoned the bridge exclaiming, "Iceberg, right ahead!". First Officer Murdoch gave the order "hard-a-starboard", using the traditional tiller order for an abrupt turn to port (left), and adjusted the engines (he either ordered through the telegraph for "full reverse" or "stop" on the engines; survivor testimony on this conflicts).[41][42][43] The iceberg brushed the ship's starboard side (right side), buckling the hull in several places and popping out rivets below the waterline over a length of 299 feet (90 m).
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Perhaps more fatal to the design of Titanic was her triple screw engine configuration, which had reciprocating steam engines driving her wing propellers, and a steam turbine driving her centre propeller. The reciprocating engines were reversible, while the turbine was not. According to subsequent evidence from Fourth Officer Joseph Boxhall, who entered the bridge just after the collision, First Officer Murdoch had set the engine room telegraph to reverse the engines to avoid the iceberg,[42] thus handicapping the turning ability of the ship. Because the centre turbine could not reverse during the "full speed astern" manoeuvre, it was simply stopped. Since the centre propeller was positioned forward of the ship's rudder, the effectiveness of that rudder would have been greatly reduced: had Murdoch simply turned the ship while maintaining her forward speed, Titanic might have missed the iceberg with metres to spare.[120] Another survivor, Frederick Scott, an engine room worker, gave contrary evidence: he recalled that at his station in the engine room all four sets of telegraphs had changed to "Stop", but not until after the collision
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CONCLUSIONS
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The steel used in constructing the RMS Titanic was probably the best plain carbon ship plate available in the period of 1909 to 1911, but it would not be acceptable at the present time for any construction purposes and particularly not for ship construction. Whether a ship constructed of modern steel would have suffered as much damage as the Titanic in a similar accident seems problematic. Navigational aides exist now that did not exist in 1912; hence, icebergs would be sighted at a much greater distance, allowing more time for evasive action. If the Titanic had not collided with the iceberg, it could have had a career of more than 20 years as the Olympic had. It was built of similar steel, in the same shipyard, and from the same design. The only difference was a big iceberg. |
you can keep "The Change" |
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Monadnock Guide
Council of Elders
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
March 14 2005
Status: offline
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Posted - September 25 2010 : 6:02:58 PM
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"Is it saying two different things. . .first that there was an error in steering and that the Titanic was steered INTO the iceberg?"
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Essentially yes, Winglo, - but at that range, it's unlikely to have made a great deal of difference. Turning a ship of that size, in such a small distance, and at the speed they were moving, a "collision of sorts' was unavoidable. Especially "if" the outboard engines were in reverse, - the turbulence around the rudder would make a turn in either direction a problem.
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Mrs Patten said the tragedy had occurred during a period when shipping communications were in transition from sail to steam.
Two different systems were in operation at the time, Rudder Orders (used for steam ships) and Tiller Orders (used for sailing ships).
Crucially, Mrs Patten said, the two steering systems were the complete opposite of one another, so a command to turn 'hard a-starboard' meant turn the wheel right under one system and left under the other."
She said when the helmsman, who had been trained in sail, received the direction, he turned the vessel towards the iceberg with tragic results. |
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winglo
Deerslayer
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
July 13 2007
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Posted - September 28 2010 : 1:24:36 PM
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| Thanks for the info, MG. I've read much of it over and over. What I don't understand is why this woman is bringing it up. |
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Monadnock Guide
Council of Elders
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
March 14 2005
Status: offline
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Posted - September 28 2010 : 2:11:51 PM
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She's getting on in years, - and is looking to plug her book is my guess.
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There is one approach that "multiple engine ships" and much smaller vessels use to make "quicker turns" and not something new. - When going ahead such as the Titanic was, and needing a left turn - throw the wheel over hard port, - keep the starboard engine full ahead, and put the port engine into "full reverse". This acts to help "pivot" the vessel, assisting the rudder a great deal. - In the Titanics case, they'd simply put the third and middle engine into "stop" - acting as a drag and assisting the pivot. Now, would this have changed anything? ... No way to tell, ...but it WOULD have turned much quicker. |
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winglo
Deerslayer
USA
Bumppo's Patron since [at least]:
July 13 2007
Status: offline
Donating Member |
Posted - October 02 2010 : 3:17:48 PM
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| Well, hindsight is always 20/20, I guess. Definitely a fascinating tragedy. |
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