Leonhard Euler and the Theory of Ships

Abstract

On April 15, 2007, the scientific world commemorated Leonhard Euler's 300th birthday. Euler's eminent work has become famous in many fields: mathematics, mechanics, optics, acoustics, astronomy, and geodesy, even in the theory of music. This article will recall his no less distinguished contributions to the founding of the modern theory of ships. These are not so widely known to the general professional public. In laying these foundations in ship theory, as in other fields, Euler was seeking "first principles, generality, order and above all clarity." This article will highlight those achievements for which we owe him our gratitude. There is no doubt that Leonhard Euler was one of the founders of the modern theory of ships. He raised many fundamental questions for the first time and through all phases of his professional lifetime devoted himself to subjects of ship theory. Thereby he gave a unique profile to this still nascent scientific discipline. Many of his approaches have been of lasting, incisive influence on the structure of this field. Some of his ideas have become so much a matter of routine today that we have forgotten their descent from Euler. This article will synoptically review Euler's contributions to the foundation of this discipline, will correlate them with the stages of Euler's own scientific development, embedded in the rich environment of scientific enlightenment in the 18th century, and will appreciate the value of his lasting aftereffects until today. The same example will serve to recognize the fertile field of tension always existing between Euler's fundamental orientation and his desire to make contributions to practical applications, which has remained characteristic of ship theory to the present day. Without claiming completeness in detail, this article aims at giving a coherent overview of Euler's approaches and objectives in this discipline. This synopsis will be presented primarily from the viewpoint of engineering science in its current stage of development.