Derivative Seakeeping Quantities
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The principal seakeeping quantity from a seakeeping analysis of a floating body at zero or forward speed is the Response Amplitude Operator (or RAO)



where
is a characteristic length. The RAO is a complex quantity with phase defined relative to the ambient wave elevation at the origin of the coordinate system

It follows that the only seakeeping quantity with
is
.
A partial list of derivative seakeeping quantities of interest in practice is:
- Free-surface elevation. Needed to estimate the clearance under the deck of offshore platforms.
- Vessel kinematics at specified points, e.g. needed to estimate the motion properties of containerized cargo.
- Relative wave elevation and velocity near the bow of a ship. Needed to estimate the occurrence and severity of slamming.
- Local and global structural loads needed for the vessel structural design.
According to linear theory, all derivative quantities which are linear superpositions of other quantities, take the form

Example 1 - Acceleration RAO at the bow of a ship
The vertical displacement of point
due to the vessel heave & pitch motions is

![\frac{d^2\xi_A(t)}{dt^2} = \ddot{\xi}_3(t) - X_A \ddot{\xi}_5(t) = \mathrm{Re} \left\{ -\omega^2 \left[ \Pi_3 - X_A \Pi_5 \right] e^{i\omega t} \right\}](/files/math/2/8/2/2829bbc30385125622055bc17f15fa65.png)
So the corresponding RAO in waves of amplitude
is:

So the RAO of the vertical acceleration at the bow is a linear combination of the heave and pitch RAO's.
Example 2 - Hydrodynamic pressure disturbance at a fixed point on a ship hull oscillating in heave & pitch in waves
The linear hydrodynamic pressures at a point
located at
relative to the ship frame is:

where


Ocean Wave Interaction with Ships and Offshore Energy Systems