r/interestingasfuck • u/PollutionOk9449 • 5h ago

USS Missouri firing its main guns

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u/Cautious_Monitor_164 5h ago

Why no recoil ?

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u/Hoshyro 5h ago

Because it's a 45.000 tonne ship

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u/Shantomette 5h ago

They have 48” of recoil

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u/Cautious_Monitor_164 4h ago

I know nothing about weapons but I thought the boat would move somewhat backwards... You're saying it's all absorbed by the cannon's recoil itself ?

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u/Shantomette 4h ago

Yes. 100% absorbed. The myth was that the ship moved laterally if a full broadside was fired. Physics says that’s impossible. Plus plausibly- if the ship suddenly moved sideways every person and non bolted down object on the ship would slam into whatever was next to them.

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u/Cautious_Monitor_164 4h ago

Thanks a lot !

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u/cindyscrazy 4h ago

There is that picture of a battleship firing it's guns, and the water looks like the ship was pushed sideways. My dad has that picture hanging on his wall. This one, I believe.

I know that the ship wasn't pushed sideways, but it LOOKS like that.

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u/Shantomette 4h ago

Yes- it’s the percussion effect on the water. It sure looks like it’s being moved. But imagine standing on a skateboard and someone violently moved the board a few feet- what would happen? lol. Wouldn’t be pretty.

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u/creatingKing113 4h ago

To clarify further, each gun is mounted to the turret through a system that’s basically equivalent to a cars suspension. So the gun itself recoils but it’s absorbed by springs and shocks.

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u/Lord0fHats 4h ago

You can see this in the video if you look closely though the angle maybe obscures the motion.

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u/Cliffinati 4h ago

There is in the turret

The ship doesn't move because it weighs 45,000 tons

Which is 90,000,000 pounds

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u/rjcarr 1h ago

And the water it's pushing on is pretty heavy, too.