The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall spar, or arrangement of spars, erected more or less vertically on the centre-line of a ship or boat.
How does a mast work?
Masts, antennae and base stations
The mast itself simply lifts the antennae to the height where they can transmit and receive radio waves. When you make a call your phone converts voice or data into radio waves that are transmitted to the nearest base station.
Why is it called a mast?
Mast is the fruit of forest trees and shrubs, such as acorns and other nuts. The term derives from the Old English mæst, meaning the nuts of forest trees that have accumulated on the ground, especially those used historically for fattening domestic pigs, and as food resources for wildlife.
What are the masts on ships called?
Starting at the bow in a two-masted vessel, the masts are termed the foremast and the mainmast; when the aftermast is considerably smaller they are named the…
What is the purpose of a mast on a ship?
A mast is a pole that rises vertically from a ship and supports the sails. Really big sailboats have more than one mast. A mast is also another name for flagpole. The mast has an important job — to support the sails, which allows the wind to propel the ship.
How tall is a mast on a ship?
Average Mast Height by Sailboat Length
| Overall Length | Mast Height (from deck) | High Range |
|---|---|---|
| >10 ft | 7 ft | 12 ft |
| 15 ft | 12 ft | 18 ft |
| 20 ft | 22 ft | 26 ft |
| 25 ft | 28 ft | 33 ft |
How many masts does a ship have?
A full-rigged ship or fully rigged ship is a sailing vessel’s sail plan with three or more masts, all of them square-rigged. A full-rigged ship is said to have a ship rig or be ship-rigged. Such vessels also have each mast stepped in three segments: lower mast, top mast, and topgallant mast.
What does mast stand for?
MAST
| Acronym | Definition |
|---|---|
| MAST | Mandatory and Statutory Training (National Health Service; UK) |
| MAST | Medical Anti-Shock Trousers |
| MAST | Metropolitan Ambulance Services Trust |
| MAST | Marine Aquarium Society of Toronto (Canada) |
What triggers a mast year?
A mast year denotes a season in which various species of trees synchronize their reproduction and drop large amounts of fruit and/or nuts – in this case, acorns. Mast years for oak trees occur periodically when weather, genetics, and available resources converge to encourage reproduction.
What are mast species?
Mast refers to specific kinds of fruits of woody species. Hard mast possesses a hard exterior, as in acorns, while soft mast has fleshy fruits as in berries. Both forms of mast are important in the diets of southern wildlife. Many southern woody plants produce mast (Table 11).
What are the Royals on a ship?
A royal is a small sail flown immediately above the topgallant on square rigged sailing ships. It was originally called the “topgallant royal” and was used in light and favorable winds. Royal sails were normally found only on larger ships with masts tall enough to accommodate the extra canvas.
What are the sails on a ship?
A sail is a tensile structure—made from fabric or other membrane materials—that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail-powered land vehicles.
What was the poop deck on a ship?
stern deck
Thus the poop deck is technically a stern deck, which in sailing ships was usually elevated as the roof of the stern or “after” cabin, also known as the “poop cabin”. On sailing ships, the helmsman would steer the craft from the quarterdeck, immediately in front of the poop deck.
What is the difference between a mast and a spar?
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall spar, or arrangement of spars, erected more or less vertically on the centre-line of a ship or boat.
What are the 3 masts called?
Barque
Barque: A vessel that has at least three masts with the fore and main masts being square. Today many “sailing school” ships are barques.
What holds the sail to the mast?
On a sailing vessel, a forestay, sometimes just called a stay, is a piece of standing rigging which keeps a mast from falling backwards. It is attached either at the very top of the mast, or in fractional rigs between about 1/8 and 1/4 from the top of the mast.
How wide are masts?
The size of masts naturally varies very much. In a 110-gun ship of 2164 tons the proportions of the mainmast were: for the lower mast, length 117 ft., diameter 3 ft. 3 in.; topmast, 70 ft., and 203/4 in.; topgallant mast, 35 ft., and 113/4 in., 222 ft. in all.
What wood are masts made of?
Sitka Spruce (Silver, Tideland or Menzies Spruce) has long been the top choice for mast builders. However many other spars have been built using whatever light, straight-grained wood was available, such as those shown below.
What is a 4 masted ship called?
9) The Bark (Barque)
They had four masts, each bearing square sails on the fore topmast and fore-and-aft sails on the aft mast. These vessels were commonly used by traders to carry extremely high volumes of cargo from Australia to Europe.
How is a mast attached to a sailboat?
Backstay – Line or cable that supports the mast and is attached to the stern of the boat. This is often a steel cable. Sidestay or Shroud – Line or cable that supports the mast from the sides of the boat. Most sailboats use at least two sidestays (one on each side).
What is the highest mast on a ship called?
Each mast on the ship has its own name as well, with the largest normally called the mainmast. Therefore, a topmast used in this mast was called the main topmast. At the top of each mast section was a cap, which protected the wooden mast from rainwater that can rot the wood.
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