page_title: Deck (ship)
section_title: Common names for decks
hierarchical_section_title: Deck (ship) / Common names for decks
caption_attribution_description: English: View from the middle of the weather deck of the warship Vasa, displayed in the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden. Picture taken on board the ship on the starboard side just in front of the mainmast. Svenska: Vy från mitten av väderdäcket på krigsskeppet Vasa på styrbord sida något framför stormasten.
context_page_description: A deck is a permanent covering over a compartment or a hull of a ship. On a boat or ship, the primary or upper deck is the horizontal structure that forms the "roof" of the hull, strengthening it and serving as the primary working surface. Vessels often have more than one level both within the hull and in the superstructure above the primary deck, similar to the floors of a multi-storey building, that are also referred to as decks, as are certain compartments and decks built over specific areas of the superstructure. Decks for some purposes have specific names.
context_section_description: In vessels having more than one deck there are various naming conventions, numerically, alphabetically, etc. However, there are also various common historical names and types of decks:
  01 level is the term used in naval services to refer to the deck above the main deck. The next higher decks are referred to as the 02 level, the 03 level, and so on. Although these are formally called decks, they are usually referred to as levels, because they are usually incomplete decks that do not extend all the way from the stem to the stern or across the ship.
  Afterdeck an open deck area toward the stern-aft. 
  Berth deck: (Naval) A deck next below the gun deck, where the hammocks of the crew are slung.
  Boat deck: Especially on ships with sponsons, the deck area where lifeboats or the ship's gig are stored. 
  Boiler deck: (river steamers) The passenger deck above the vessel's boilers. 
  Bridge deck: (a) The deck area including the helm and navigation station, and where the Officer of the Deck/Watch will be found, also known as the conn (b) An athwartships structure at the forward end of the cockpit with a deck, often somewhat lower than the primary deck, to prevent a pooping wave from entering through the companionway. May also refer to the deck of a bridge. 
  Flight deck: (Naval) A deck from which aircraft take off or land. 
  Flush deck: Any continuous unbroken deck from stem to stern. 
  Forecastle deck: A partial deck above the main deck under which the sailors have their berths, extending from the foremast to the bow. 
  Freeboard deck: assigned by a classification society to determine the ship's freeboard; usually the highest continuous deck, i.e. equivalent to the main deck. 
  Gun deck: (Naval) on a multi-decked vessel, a deck below the upper deck where the ships' cannon were carried. The term originally referred to deck for which the primary function was the mounting of cannon to be fired in broadsides. However, on many smaller and unrated vessels the upper deck, forecastle and quarterdeck bore all of the cannons but were not referred to as the gun deck. 
  Hangar deck: (Naval) A deck aboard an aircraft carrier used to store and maintain aircraft. 
  Half-deck: That portion of the deck next below the forecastle or quarterdeck which is between the mainmast and the cabin. 
  Helicopter deck (Heli or Helo deck): Usually located near the stern and always kept clear of obstacles hazardous to a helicopter landing. 
  Hurricane deck: (River Steamers, etc.), the upper deck, usually a light deck, erected above the frame of the hull (deriving its name from the wind that always seemed to blow on the deck). 
  Lido deck: Open area, typically at or near the stern of a passenger ship, housing the main outdoor swimming pool and sunbathing area. 
  Lower deck: (a) the deck immediately over the hold, orig. only of a ship with two decks. (b) synonym for berth deck. (c) alternative name for a secondary gun deck 
  Main deck: The principal deck of a vessel; in some ships the highest deck of the hull, usually but not always the weather deck; in sailing warships often a deck under the upper deck. 
  Middle or Waist deck: The upper deck amidships, the working area of the deck. 
  Orlop deck: The deck or part of a deck where the cables are stowed, usually below the waterline. It is the lowest deck in a ship. 
  Poop deck: The deck forming the roof of a poop or poop cabin, built on the upper deck and extending from the mizzenmast aft. 
  Promenade deck: A "wrap-around porch" found on passenger ships and riverboats encircling the superstructure.  This can have open railings or be enclosed in glass, or a combination.  Often the entire level where this is located is referred to as the promenade deck. 
  Quarterdeck: (a) The part of the upper deck abaft the mainmast, including the poop deck when there is one. Usually reserved for ship's officers, guests, and passengers. (b) (Naval) The shipboard area, connected by a gangplank to a dock or another ship, where personnel arrive and depart a naval vessel in port. It is where the Officer of the Deck and his assistants are stationed, official vi
caption: Weather deck of the Swedish 17th-century warship Vasa looking aft toward the sterncastle
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon PowerShot A610", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "180", "Image YResolution": "180", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Microsoft Windows Photo Gallery 6.0.6001.18000", "Image DateTime": "2009:12:16 21:59:13", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "246", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "180", "Thumbnail YResolution": "180", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "2444", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6260", "EXIF ExposureTime": "2/5", "EXIF FNumber": "14/5", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:12:16 10:34:08", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:12:16 10:34:08", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "3", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "21/16", "EXIF ApertureValue": "95/32", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "95/32", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "80", "EXIF FocalLength": "73/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1944", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2592", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "2592", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "1944", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "2268", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "2592000/283", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "486000/53", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF OffsetSchema": "62"}