• TranscendentalEmpire@lemm.ee
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      8 months ago

      Right… But they aren’t operating in vacuum. Ships that large take a while to get any speed and lose it relatively quickly, they are moving a lot of water.

      Ive since looked at the video, and it does clear things up a bit. Looks like they lost power and slowed, but when they regained power the engines were still engaged, causing them to pick up speed again.

      Afterwards the power cut once again as they neared the bridge. When they came back on they threw the engines into reverse, which is what caused the bow to drift starboard

      • ezmac@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        You’re very wrong here. These ships don’t lose speed quickly. They can take MILES to stop. Some of the heaviest vehicles on earth with the most momentum and they are designed for effective displacement.

        Source: I work in the maritime industry

        • TranscendentalEmpire@lemm.ee
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          8 months ago

          They can take MILES to stop. Some of the heaviest vehicles on earth with the most momentum and they are designed for effective displacement.

          At full speed… There is a huge difference between 5 and 24 knots.

          A ship is supposed to be able to brake within 15 times their full length at full speed.

          My original concern was with the fact that they hit the bridge head on without power. Meaning they were already close to the bridge when they lost power and presumably steering towards the pile when they lost power.

          I could see them losing power and drifting into the support, but couldn’t really make sense of the head on collision. If they had been close enough to ram with just momentum, one would presume steering before they lost power would have already been be oriented.

          Like I said, watching the video cleared things up, the operator threw it in full reverse, which forced the bow starboard.