Is an unsinkable ship possible to build?

Answer 1

i personally dont think so...between nature and terrorists it pretty much impossible

Answer 2

Wow some whacky answers out there.

Let me tell you what is often done today.

Many boats today are built with styrofoam blocks that fill the empty spaces of the boat. The thought is, even if there is an extreme hull failure in the boat and it takes on water, the foam will continue to displace enough water to keep at least part of the boat above water so that it never truly "sinks".

There are several manufacturers that build their recreational vessels in such a way. For example, I know MacGregor builds their 25' sailboat this way. MacGregor also claims the boat is un capsizable, meaning that even if it does turn over, it will always right itself eventually.

For larger vessels, if they held to the principle above (some sort of displacement material that was less dense than water, the sum of which would hold keep at least part of the ship's superstructure above water), then yes a virtually unsinkable ship is possible.

However, when you consider the volume of diplacement material that would be required for larger ships, it would make it unpractical to build those vessels because their insides would essentially be filled with the material and you couldn't use the ship for any sort of passenger or cargo conveyance.

Answer 3

No, because you can never rule out unusual sets of events. You can make it highly unlikely that it could be sunk, but no amount of planning can rule out all the possibilities. For every precaution that you take, there is something that can eventually work around that precaution.

The Titanic was labeled as unsinkable, and probably deserved the title. However, by chance, the iceberg collision compromised more airtight chambers than would allow it to float. Thus, it was lost on its maiden voyage.

Push comes to shove, it's just a matter of what the ship comes up again. Whether it's an iceberg, a hurricane, or a tactical nuclear missile, something will always be able to take it down.

Answer 4

Technically I don’t think there is such a thing as an unsinkable ship. That being said we can look at ships that are specially built to take extreme punishment.

The Motor Life Boat is part of the US Coast Guard fleet and was built to withstand the most severe conditions at sea. It was designed to be self-bailing, self-righting and practically unsinkable. Lifeboats are used as a heavy weather surf rescue response platform.

The Unites States Coast Guard's 47' Motor Life Boat (MLB) is the most sophisticated MLB ever built, able to withstand impacts of three times the acceleration of gravity, she can survive a complete roll-over, self-righting in less than 10 seconds with all machinery remaining fully operational. Powered by twin Detroit Diesels producing 435 hp (324 kW) each, the 47 MLB can travel at 25 knots (46 km/h) to reach her destination.

The US Coast Guard, the British and the Irish Royal National Lifeboat Institution have a long history with Motor Life Boat’s for more information see the links below and also look at Motor Life Boat (MLB)

Answer 5

Depends on your definition of unsinkable.

If you build the thing totally out of material that is less dense than water then in can't be sunk. However, it would still be possible to break it into a gazillion pieces thus rendering it ineffective as a ship.

Answer 6

lots of good answers here; let me try to combine a bunch of them....
yes, you can build an unsinkable boat......like the Boston Whaler....if you build in some sort of flotation like Styrofoam.

Yes, it will sink if its smashed into pieces ( Like up against rocks )

It is impractical to build a merchant ship or cruise ship with enough flotation to survive, say, hitting a rock and gutting the bottom open.....there would be no room for cargo.

My contribution: Yes it is possible to build a ship that is practically unsinkable.the answer is compartmentalization. Lots of watertight bulkheads and hatches. The German Battleship Bismark and the Japaneses battleships Yamato and Mushasi took fearful punishment.Bismark pounded for two hours and her crew to this day claim she sank because they scuttled her, not battle damage; Yamato took ten torpedoes and ten bombs...so yes you can build a ship that, except for freakish circumstances wont sink from normal operations, REALLY BAD storms, or even enemy action ( nuc weapons excluded!).

and as far as Titanic: her watertight bulkheads didn't go all the way up. If she had had a watertight deck over the top of them, she wouldn't have sunk.

Answer 7

The Archimedes principle, is the upward force on an object arising from the displacement of the fluid (i.e., a liquid or a gas) in which it is fully or partially immersed. A ship which is stable and resists the forces which act on a floating object is very possible. Unsinkable, though, is a very broad term, which I do not believe it is possible given the current selection of building materials. This ship would need to be built from materials which have properties and characteristics which do not currently exist. Some compromises are neccesary in size and capacities as well. Unsinkability would encompass all conditions in which a ship might operate, including warfare. Modern warfare includes the use of nuclear weapons and that is the one factor in designing for "unsinkability" I believe would be difficult to overcome. Other explosives such as mines also make designing to the unsinkability standard, difficult and expensive.

Water Tight Integrity, the current philosphy with regard to maintaining stability and buoyancy of a ship, depends entirely on compartmentalizing the interior space of a ship and preventing communication and subsequent weight redistribution between isolated spaces within the ship's hull. Gravity is a powerful force which causes fluids to want to find level at all times. This in part drives the design of a ship on the "compartmentalized" platform. This design is also heavily reliant on redudant ship's systems which dewater and ballast. These systems are not infallible and suffer failures as well. In order for a ship to be unsinkable, it would need to built from materials which are themselves buoyant and would need to be incredibly robust. Reliance on systemic support mechanisms would need to be eliminated in order to achieve your goal. The ship maintenance of bouyancy would need to be analogous to the "solid state" which modern electronics are built to, no moving parts required. This eliminates many of the stresses which would naturally cause failures of systems which support the design purpose of the ship.

The building materials would need to be able to withstand incredible stresses. The materials which exists currently that meet this criteria do not meet the requirement for natural permanent buoyancy. These materials would also need to be impervious to the forces of nature which degrade the integrity of materials and ultimately cause failures.

The forces which resist submergence, gravity would need to compensate for the other weights which would be carried by the vessel as well.

I believe the answer to your question, given current technology is No.

Answer 8

most likely not.. considering what would need to go into a ship for it to be "unsinkable". for it to be unsinkable, it would have to have the ability to become resistant to anything "thrown its way" that would include icebergs as well as man-made things.therefore if an unsinkable ship was possible to built it probably wouldn't stay afloat bc of the amount of weight put into it to arm it against everything.

Answer 9

It's not possible to build a ship that can withstand weapons, but according to the U.S. Navy you CAN build a ship that will not sink no matter how rough the seas get, assuming it's water-tight. It's all based on proportion -- the ship needs to be twice as long as it is wide and 60% as high as it is wide (so the ratio would be 3 units high, 5 units wide, and 10 units long). Coincidentally, those are the exact proportions of Noah's Ark -- check Genesis chapters 7 through 9.

Answer 10

No. There are no absolutes in this world. There's no bank that's fully secure, no safe that can't be broken into and no ship that's unsinkable. If you want absolutes or certainties seek God.

Answer 11

Yes, here's an idea, build a ship and then name it "Unsinkable" and see what happens!