The Marvelous Design That Empowered WWII’s Biggest Battleship With Immense Speed

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Bow Down.
American warships had to fight battles in two oceans resulting in a maximum width of 108 ft wide allowing them to squeeze through the narrow Panama Canal. However, Japanese ships were not limited by size so the Yamato-Class Battleship was able to built with a massive width in order to sustain the recoil of its powerful guns.ย Many people would think that such a massive ship wouldn’t be able to move as fast as it did, but there was a remarkable innovation that allowed it to reach a speed of 27 knots, the bulbous bow.
The bulbous bow is an engineering feat that shows how a little bit can go a long way. Normally when is a ship is cruising through the water it forms a wave that rises up against the ship.

A bulbous bow projects forward creating its own wave, therefore preventing the formation of a wave that would press up against the ship.

“In order to let the Japanese Battleship Yamato to 27 knots in full load condition, equipped with aย large power system. However, because of the large number and installation of the bulbous bow, the result, it satisfies the 27 knots under the condition of low output power 8.2%, equivalent to a reduction of 12 thousand horsepower output.”
The Yamato’s innovative use of the bulbous bow allowed it to travel fast and conserve fuel. In this clip, several historians take a look at the Yamato’s bulbous bow and the history of the colossal warship.