Difference between revisions of "Ship's Bells"

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(New page: A '''Ship's bells''' are used to indicate time onboard ship. One bell sounds for each half hour. One bell means 12:30, two bells mean 1:00, three bells mean 1:30, and so on until 4:00 ("ei...)
 
(A little bit of research - article rewrite.)
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A '''Ship's bells''' are used to indicate time onboard ship. One bell sounds for each half hour. One bell means 12:30, two bells mean 1:00, three bells mean 1:30, and so on until 4:00 ("eight bells"). At 4:30 the cycle begins again with one bell.<ref>U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration [http://www.marad.dot.gov/publications/glossary/glossary.html]</ref>
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A '''Ship's bells''' are used to indicate time onboard ship. One bell sounds for each half hour. Bells are rung in pairs to make it easier to count.<ref>http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/shipbee.htm</ref>  Thus, for a watch starting at 12:00, one bell means 12:30, two bells mean 1:00, two bells pause 1 bell means 1:30, and so on until 4:00 ("eight bells"). This cycle starts again for the next watch.
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The use of 30 minutes as the interval between bells originates from the use of a half hour glass to keep time.  Each half hour, the glass would be flipped and the appropriate count of the bell would be rung.<ref>http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq83-1.htm</ref>
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{|border=1
 +
|-
 +
!Number of bells
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!colspan=3|Hour
 +
|-
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!One bell
 +
|12:30
 +
|4:30
 +
|8:30
 +
|-
 +
!Two bells
 +
|1:00
 +
|5:00
 +
|9:00
 +
|-
 +
!Three bells
 +
|1:30
 +
|5:30
 +
|9:30
 +
|-
 +
!Four bells
 +
|2:00
 +
|6:00
 +
|10:00
 +
|-
 +
!Five bells
 +
|2:30
 +
|6:30
 +
|10:30
 +
|-
 +
!Six bells
 +
|3:00
 +
|7:00
 +
|11:00
 +
|-
 +
!Seven bells
 +
|3:30
 +
|7:30
 +
|11:30
 +
|-
 +
!Eight bells
 +
|4:00
 +
|8:00
 +
|12:00
 +
|}
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==References==
 
==References==
 
<references/>
 
<references/>
 
[[Category:Shipping terms]]
 
[[Category:Shipping terms]]

Revision as of 21:20, July 12, 2007

A Ship's bells are used to indicate time onboard ship. One bell sounds for each half hour. Bells are rung in pairs to make it easier to count.[1] Thus, for a watch starting at 12:00, one bell means 12:30, two bells mean 1:00, two bells pause 1 bell means 1:30, and so on until 4:00 ("eight bells"). This cycle starts again for the next watch.

The use of 30 minutes as the interval between bells originates from the use of a half hour glass to keep time. Each half hour, the glass would be flipped and the appropriate count of the bell would be rung.[2]


Number of bells Hour
One bell 12:30 4:30 8:30
Two bells 1:00 5:00 9:00
Three bells 1:30 5:30 9:30
Four bells 2:00 6:00 10:00
Five bells 2:30 6:30 10:30
Six bells 3:00 7:00 11:00
Seven bells 3:30 7:30 11:30
Eight bells 4:00 8:00 12:00


References

  1. http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/shipbee.htm
  2. http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq83-1.htm