A cabin or berthing is an enclosed space generally on a

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

or an

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or by using the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in ...

. A cabin which protrudes above the level of a ship's deck may be referred to as a deckhouse.

Sailing ships

In sailing ships, the officers and paying passengers would have an individual or shared cabin. The

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

would occupy the "great cabin" that normally spanned the width of the

stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Or ...

and had large windows. On a warship, it was a privileged area, separate from the rest of the ship, for the exclusive use of the captain. In large warships, the cabin was subdivided into day and night cabins (bedrooms) by movable panels, called '' bulk-heads'', that could be removed in time of battle to leave the cabin clear for the gunners to use the stern chasers several of which were usually stationed in the cabin. On large three decker warships in the

age of sail The Age of Sail is a period that lasted at the latest from the mid-16th (or mid- 15th) to the mid-19th centuries, in which the dominance of sailing ships in global trade and warfare culminated, particularly marked by the introduction of nava ...

the captain's cabin was sometimes appropriated by the

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet ...

. The captain would be consigned to the cabin below on the middle gun-deck.

Modern warships

In most modern

warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster ...

s, the commanding officer has a main cabin—the in-port cabin, often adjacent to the ship's central control room (

operations room A control room or operations room is a central space where a large physical facility or physically dispersed service can be monitored and controlled. It is often part of a larger command center. Overview A control room's purpose is produc ...

)—and a sea cabin adjacent to the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually someth ...

. Thus, when likely to be called from sleep or attending to administration, the commanding officer can go to the sea cabin and thereby be able to appear at the bridge or operations room immediately. The sea cabin is sparsely equipped, containing just a bunk, a desk, and basic toilet facilities. The in-port cabin is more lavishly furnished, with separate bedroom and combination sitting room/office, and more elaborate toiletry facilities. For ships intended to act as

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the ...

s, like the former

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

—now a

museum ship A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...

—the admiral also has a sea cabin (adjacent to the captain's sea cabin) and an in-port cabin, in addition to the captain's cabins. Officers normally have their own cabins—sometimes referred to as staterooms—which double as their offices. Some senior

petty officer A petty officer (PO) is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotation OR-5 or OR-6. In many nations, they are typically equal to a sergeant in comparison to other military branches. Often they may be super ...

s may have cabins for similar reasons. Sailors sleep in berthing spaces.

Passenger ships

In ships carrying

passenger A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. Th ...

s, they are normally accommodated in cabins, taking the terminology familiar to seafarers. First-class cabins were traditionally referred to as staterooms, and today many cruise lines now prefer to refer to passenger cabins as staterooms or suites.

Cabin crawl

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as ...

terms, a cabin crawl is an event where passengers tour the cabins of fellow passengers. A cruise ship may also offer a cabin crawl of cabins or suites which did not sell for a particular sailing. The purpose of a cabin crawl is to give passengers an idea of the space and layout of various cabin options for their next cruise. Cabin crawls are normally organized prior to a cruise, through cruise-fan websites.

Spacecraft

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, ...

, cabins are required to fully supply food and

oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements ...

for their crew. On missions lasting a year or longer, the cabins have to be self-sustaining, i.e. replenish their own water and oxygen. The space cabin for any long-range crewed mission is expected to be reasonably spacious, with approximately 28 cubic metres allotted to each occupant. In addition, cabins have life support systems that should have the capability to meet a variety of off-nominal conditions, including cabin fires, depressurization, and component shutdown or failure. Frequently, these conditions occur so quickly that recovery can be provided only by automatic control systems. In the late 1960s, several experimental ground facilities were developed to evaluate regenerative life support systems for crewed space flight.

References