# What does the beeping noise in this ship in rough sea indicate? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 20, 2023, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341 "2023-05-20T19:25:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Saffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saffer/32/6440_2.png) [@Saffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saffer)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/1 "2023-05-20T19:25:24Z")
YouTube video: [Ship in Storm | Cruise Ship Climbing Up Big Waves - YouTube](https://youtu.be/j2sxfx3SSCQ) Apparently YouTube has determined that I am interested in videos of ships in rough seas. This beeping noise is common after crashing into the sea after ramping off a wave. What exactly is it alerting? ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/2 "2023-05-20T19:34:25Z")
Only a guess, but could it be a warning that they’ve exceeded a certain amount of pitch or roll? ---
**Author:** ![SharltoCopley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sharltocopley/32/12309_2.png) [@SharltoCopley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SharltoCopley)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/3 "2023-05-20T19:48:47Z")
This was very difficult to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/4 "2023-05-20T20:10:04Z")
Large ships can have strain gauges installed in critical areas of the hull to measure if structural limits are being exceeded (or coming close). No idea if that’s what’s going on here, but it’s a possibility. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/5 "2023-05-20T20:32:59Z")
Wow. I don’t have a factual answer, but was it only me or did anybody else have “The legend lives on, from the Chippewa on down….” Playing in their heads while watching that? ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/6 "2023-05-20T20:34:46Z")
I think that beep indicates each time a passenger throws up. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/7 "2023-05-20T20:36:04Z")
> [@Saffer](#): > > Apparently YouTube has determined that I am interested in videos of ships in rough seas. Who isn’t? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/8 "2023-05-20T22:42:22Z")
The camera angle made it look a lot worse than it was, by looking steeply downward at the foredeck well aft of the bow. Had they done a portrait style shot with the horizon visible in the distance that would not have had nearly the roller coaster effect. The loud tone _seems_ to indicate pitch. Each time the ship points steeply down it sounds and each time the ship’s bow comes back up a little ways it stops. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2023, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/9 "2023-05-20T23:27:46Z")
Was it just me, or did everyone who clicked on the vid start with an advert for Viking cruise ships on the Rhine? Nice and calm. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2023, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/10 "2023-05-21T00:43:42Z")
I’m not overly familiar with cruise vessels. Cargo vessels are more my thing. I agree with LSLGuy that the warning tone seems to sound when the vessel pitches heavily. I’ve never heard of a vessel fitted with alarms specifically to indicate inordinate pitch or roll. It’s hard to see how they would be necessary since everybody on board is all too well aware. My best guess is that it is a low level alarm fitted in the tank of something critical: probably main engine lube oil. When a vessel rolls or pitches heavily, sloshing of liquid can uncover a low-level alarm momentarily. Alternatively, I know that an alarm will sound if strong external pressure from a wave or similar momentarily overcomes the hydraulics operating the rudder. However, that doesn’t seem right given that the alarm seems to sound with pitching rather than rolling but I guess on a cruise vessel it could be an alarm indicating that the waves are overcoming the hydraulics driving the stabilisers. Anyway, my best guess is a low level alarm. Edited to add: Actually, I just thought of another one. Sometimes, when a vessel pitches heavily, the prop will come out of the water potentially causing the main engine to over rev, but for a governor preventing it from doing so. Operation of the governor would also most likely sound an alarm. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2023, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/11 "2023-05-21T04:39:39Z")
When ships take on water, even at anchor, they list or pitch. I suspect the alarm is to warn the crew (perhaps sleeping) that the ship is taking on water and may sink or capsize… ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2023, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/12 "2023-05-21T08:34:20Z")
Highly unlikely. Large seas don’t typically hole modern ships, or cause them to take on water, in the absence of structural failure. Large ships are manned at all times, even more so in daylight. Void spaces in the hull are not fitted with alarms in my experience. There maybe high level alarms in certain tanks but it is unlikely they would be holed simply by large seas. The reality is that there are a plethora of alarms on a modern ship (almost to a “cry wolf” level). There are numerous possibilities. I’ve given three that are realistic. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2023, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-beeping-noise-in-this-ship-in-rough-sea-indicate/984341/13 "2023-05-21T17:40:17Z")
Fixed the typo in the title, because it was bugging me.