Is it because only the outside is metal, but they use ligher-than-metal materials on the inside?
Because.
Thanks for the explanation. Like the OP I honestly didn't know how ships floated; I actually thought it was due to "displacement" or something although I didn't really know what the fuck that ACTUALLY meant.If the ship was solid all the way through (wood, metal, doesn't really matter) it would sink, but most of it's volume is filled with air so it floats. What's important is the average density of the whole ship, it's total weight divided by it's total volume. The metal hull is heavier than water, but it's filled with air that is much lighter than water, and the density for the metal and air together is less than the density of water so the ship floats..
If you take an empty balloon that weighs 1/2 oz (14 gr) and put it in a cup of water, it will sink. If you fill it with air it will still weigh 1/2 oz, but now if you put the inflated balloon in your bath tub it will float.
Going back to the ship, if the hull gets breached and enough of the air is displaced by water, the density of the metal hull filled with water will be greater than the density of just the surrounding water (because metal is heavy/dense), so the ship will sink.
you should buy me a beer just for reading your posts.Obviously, metal ways waaaay more than water. So why to these giant metal ships float? Is it because only the outside is metal, but they use ligher-than-metal materials on the inside? Like wooden frames or something?
Thanks!
Ah, so it's levitation. Cool! I'm going to get the OP some steel shoes with really thick soles so he can walk on water.Magnetic levitation. The spinning molten rock and iron in the Earth's core creates a magnetic field that repels giant metal objects like boats. Because science bitches!
Only if the hull has green valve stems.Yes. Mostly nitrogen.
When air over the top of the wing moves faster than the air moving around the bottom of the wing, you get flight.So why do big metal planes fly, anyway?
So why do big metal planes fly, anyway?
What the OP really means is...OMG! Lookit them big boats! They're made of STEEL, lots and lots of STEEL. We all know steel doesn't float...so how do they do it?
Is there a wooden frame under all that steel that allows them to float?