How much of a large cruise ship is under the water?

Question

I'm curious as to how much of a large cruise ship (For example, a carnival fun ship) is under the water, the part of it you cannot see. I would like to see a picture or a drawing online somewhere, an example or a good explanation. does it just sit on top of the water? Or does it have a portion of the ship that goes under the water as well and if so how much on average. Also how easily is it for a cruise ship to be tipped over on it's side.

Answer 1

the more weight the higher the water line. i was on the diamond princess and i just happen to have the stats for it.

gross tonnage =115,875

overall length   =952ft.

breadth            =123ft.

fuel capacity    =2649 tons

passenger capacity =3,078

crew    = 1,115

cruising speed       =20.7  

i have a picture  that shows the water line at 30 or 32 ft.

they have props on both sides, front and back , so they can park it easier than driving a car. they just pull up and slide it in sideways, between two other ships.

Answer 2

You would be surprised how little of the ship is actually below the water line.

Each ship has what they call a 'critical list.'  I am a former employee of two different cruiselines.  Critical list on the ships I worked on was 26 degrees.  I was aboard one ship that had to take countermeasures at full speed and we went to 16 degrees.  Every crystal glass on the ship was destroyed, every bottle of booze fell off the bars and shattered and a grand piano left its mooring and went skidding off the stage, destroying it.  Luckily this happened with no paying passengers on board.  These ships are designed to take a LOT of punishment.  Hope that answers your question.

Answer 3

How much of a cruise ship is below the water depends on how much of it is above the water.  A cruise ship with fifteen passenger decks will have more of the ship below the water than a cruise ship with only ten passenger decks (the passengers are always above the water line - only the crew sleeps and works below the water line).  

The term for the amount of the ship that is below the water is DRAFT (see the link below) ...

http://cruises.about.com/od/cruiseglossa...

For example, the Disney ships (they are twins) have a draft of 25.3 feet (see the link below) ...

http://disneycruise.disney.go.com/dcl/en...

The Emerald Princess (113,000 GRT) has a draft of 26 feet (see the link below) ...

http://cruises.about.com/od/princesscrui...

The Explorer of the Seas (138,000 GRT) has a draft of 29 feet (see the link below) ...

http://www.cruisemates.com/articles/revi...

The HAL Amsterdam (61,000 GRT) has a draft of 25' 7" (see the link below) ...

http://www.cruisemates.com/articles/feat...

Nonetheless, you seem interested in the Carnival ships.  Try the link below and click on the ship you are interested in ...

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/Ships/FunShi...

Then click on the ship's highlights.  While it will give you some technical information about the ship, it does not list the draft.  It will also provide you with photos of the ships.

As to the draft of the various Carnival ships:

Conquest class (Conquest, Glory, Valor, Liberty & Freedom - 110,000 GRT) the draft is 27 feet ...

http://tripcentral.ca/trip/CRUZ/CARNIVAL...

Spirit class (Spirit, Pride, Miracle & Legend - 86,000 GRT) the draft is 26 feet ...

http://www.tripcentral.ca/trip/CRUZ/CARN...

Fantasy class (Fantasy, Ecstasy, Fascination, Imagination, Sensation, Elation, Paradise & Inspiration - 70,367 GRT) the draft is 25' 9"

http://www.carnivalcruiseweb.com/carniva...

The Destiny (101,353 GRT) has a draft of 27 feet ...

http://www.tripcentral.ca/trip/CRUZ/CARN...

The Victory & Triumph (they are twins - 101,509 GRT) the draft is 27 feet ...

http://www.tripcentral.ca/trip/CRUZ/CARN...

The Celebration (47,262 GRT) the draft is 26 feet ...

http://tripcentral.ca/trip/CRUZ/CARNIVAL...