A porthole , sometimes called bull's-eye window or bull's-eye , is a generally circular window used on the hull of ships to admit light and air. Though the term is of maritime origin, it is also used to describe round windows on armored vehicles , aircraft , automobiles (the Ford Thunderbird a notable example) and even spacecraft .
25-467: [REDACTED] Look up deadlight in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Deadlight or Deadlights may refer to: Boats [ edit ] Deadlight, a wood or metal shutter fastened over a ship's porthole or cabin window in stormy weather Deadlight, less common term for a deck prism , a porthole fixed in a ship's deck to give natural light to
50-526: A 1996 EP by Norwegian band Gehenna "Deadlight", a song by Draconian from the 2011 album A Rose for the Apocalypse "Deadlight", a song by Sirenia from the 2023 album 1977 Video games [ edit ] Deadlight (video game) , a 2012 video game Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Deadlight . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
75-539: A hold or cabin below deck Operation Deadlight , a 1946 UK naval operation to scuttle German U-boats following the end of WWII Books [ edit ] Deadlight , first paranormal SF novel of Scottish novelist Archie Roy 1968 Deadlights, in the works of Stephen King such as It (novel) Music [ edit ] Deadlight (album) , a 2007 album by Finnish band Before the Dawn Deadlights (American band) , 1998–2000 Deadlights (EP) ,
100-414: A separate frame which is hinged onto the base frame so that it can be opened and closed. In addition, many portholes also have metal storm covers that can be securely fastened against the window when necessary. The main purpose of the storm cover is, as its name implies, to protect the window from heavy seas. It is also used to block light from entering lower berths when darkness is preferred. The storm cover
125-402: A ship's side whether for cannon or not. A porthole consists of at least two structural components and is, in its simplest form, similar to any other type of window in design and purpose. The porthole is primarily a circular glass disk, known as a 'portlight', encased in a metal frame that is bolted securely into the side of a ship's hull. Sometimes the glass disk of a porthole is encased in
150-443: A ship, the function of a porthole, when open, is to permit light and fresh air to enter the dark and often damp below- deck quarters of the vessel. It also affords below-deck occupants a limited view to the outside world. When closed, the porthole provides a strong water-tight, weather-tight and sometimes light-tight barrier. A porthole on a ship may also be called a sidescuttle or side scuttle (side hole), as officially termed in
175-531: Is from Middle English ladebord and the term lade is related to the modern load . Larboard sounds similar to starboard and in 1844 the Royal Navy ordered that port be used instead. The United States Navy followed suit in 1846. Larboard continued to be used well into the 1850s by whalers . In chapter 12 of Life on the Mississippi (1883) Mark Twain writes larboard was used to refer to
200-486: Is referred to as a deadlight in maritime parlance. Storm covers are also used on navy and merchant marine ships to prevent interior light from escaping the ship's lower berths, and to provide protection from hostile fire. Hinged porthole windows and storm covers are accessible from inside the ship's hull, and are typically fastened to their closed positions by hand tightening several pivoting, threaded devices, commonly referred to as "dogs". Older portholes can be identified by
225-417: Is the side to the left of an observer aboard the vessel and facing the bow , towards the direction the vessel is heading when underway in the forward direction. The starboard side is to the right of such an observer. This convention allows orders and information to be communicated unambiguously, without needing to know which way any particular crew member is facing. The term starboard derives from
250-422: Is where access to a boat, ship, or aircraft is at the side; it is usually only on the port side (hence the name). Port side and starboard side respectively refer to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow. The port and starboard sides of the vessel always refer to the same portion of the vessel's structure, and do not depend on the position of someone aboard the vessel. The port side
275-482: The French tribord , Italian tribordo, Catalan estribord , Portuguese estibordo , Spanish estribor and Estonian tüürpoord . Since the steering oar was on the right side of the boat, it would tie up at the wharf on the other side. Hence the left side was called port . The Oxford English Dictionary cites port in this usage since 1543. Formerly, larboard was often used instead of port . This
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#1732801159840300-544: The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea . This term is used in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations . It is also used in related rules and regulations for the construction of ships. The use of the word "sidescuttle" instead of "porthole" is meant to be broad, including any covered or uncovered hole in the side of the vessel. A deadlight is a hinged metal cover which can be clamped over
325-530: The Old English steorbord , meaning the side on which the ship is steered. Before ships had rudders on their centrelines, they were steered with a steering oar at the stern of the ship on the right hand side of the ship, because more people are right-handed . The "steer-board" etymology is shared by the German Steuerbord, Dutch stuurboord and Swedish styrbord , which gave rise to
350-551: The UK's Merchant Shipping (Distress Signals and Prevention of Collisions) Regulations 1996 (and comparable US documents from the US Coast Guard ) —sets forth requirements for maritime vessels to avoid collisions, whether by sail or powered, and whether a vessel is overtaking, approaching head-on, or crossing. To set forth these navigational rules, the terms starboard and port are essential, and to aid in in situ decision-making,
375-434: The area that can be viewed, but eliminates distortion associated with curved glass. Port side Port and starboard are nautical terms for watercraft , aircraft and spacecraft , referring respectively to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow (front). Vessels with bilateral symmetry have left and right halves which are mirror images of each other. One asymmetric feature
400-416: The astronauts used at the beginning and end of each flight. Portholes on submarines are generally made of acrylic plastic. In the case of deep diving submarines, the portholes can be several inches thick. The edge of the acrylic is usually conically tapered such that the external pressure forces the acrylic window against the seat. Usually such windows are flat rather than spherically dished. This decreases
425-538: The cracking that can result from thermal shock . Those on the International Space Station were made from quartz glass mounted on titanium frames, covered with enamel. These were designed to be opened though no returning astronaut has done so. The windows also have shrouds or doors to protect them from micro-meteorites. On the Apollo space capsules a porthole was located in the hatch that
450-505: The left side of the ship ( Mississippi River steamboat ) in his days on the river – circa 1857–1861. Lewis Carroll rhymed larboard and starboard in "Fit the Second" of The Hunting of the Snark (1876). An Anglo-Saxon record of a voyage by Ohthere of Hålogaland used the word "bæcbord" ("back-board") for the left side of a ship. With the steering rudder on the starboard side the man on
475-401: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Deadlight&oldid=1188916768 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Porthole On
500-853: The porthole is such that it achieves its humble purposes without sacrificing the integrity of the ship's hull. The porthole's thick glass and rugged construction, tightly spaced fasteners, indeed even its round shape, all contribute to its purpose of maintaining hull strength and withstanding the pressure of storm waves crashing against it. Recently there has been a decline in the number of portholes on larger ships. Cruise liners have higher superstructures with more upper deck cabins which can have large windows and balconies. Most warships no longer have portholes on their main hulls as they could weaken them and modern vessels have air conditioning and strong lighting below decks meaning that they are no longer necessary. Portholes on spacecraft must be made from glass that can survive rapid temperature changes, without suffering
525-531: The porthole to secure it in heavy weather. According to the Navy Department Library, the word "porthole" has nothing to do with its location on the port side of a ship, but originated during the reign of Henry VII of England (1485). The king insisted on mounting guns too large for his ships and therefore the conventional methods of securing the weapons on the forecastle and aftcastle could not be used. A French shipbuilder named James Baker
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#1732801159840550-636: The protruding collar of their base plate which may be up to several inches deep, thus accommodating the thickness of a wooden hull. Portholes range in diameter from several inches to more than two feet, and weigh from several pounds to over one hundred pounds. Much of the porthole's weight comes from its glass, which, on ships, can be as much as two inches thick. Metal components of a porthole are also typically very heavy; they are usually sand-cast and made of bronze , brass , steel , iron , or aluminium . Bronze and brass are most commonly used, favoured for their resistance to saltwater corrosion . The design of
575-553: The rudder had his back to the bagbord (Nordic for portside) side of the ship. The words for "port side" in other European languages, such as German Backbord , Dutch and Afrikaans bakboord , Swedish babord , Spanish babor , Portuguese bombordo , Italian babordo , French bâbord and Estonian pakpoord , are derived from the same root. The navigational treaty convention, the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea —for instance, as appears in
600-423: The two sides of each vessel are marked, dusk to dawn, by navigation lights , the vessel's starboard side by green and its port side by red. Aircraft are lit in the same way. Port and starboard are also commonly used when dividing crews; for example with a two watch system the teams supplying the personnel are often named Port and Starboard. This may extend to entire crews, such as the forward-deployed crews of
625-456: Was commissioned to solve the problem, which he did by piercing the ship's sides so the cannon could be mounted inside the fore and aft castles. For heavy weather and when the cannons were not in use, the openings were fitted with covers, that were called porte in French, meaning " door ". " Porte " was Anglicized to "port" and later corrupted to porthole. Eventually, it came to mean any opening in
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