Multihull

A multihull is a ship, vessel, craft or boat with more than one hull. Multihull ships (vessels, craft, boats) include multiple types, sizes and applications. Hulls range from two to five, of uniform or diverse types and arrangements

Catamarans are the most common type, with two symmetric hulls. They are used as racing, sailing, tourist and fishing boats. About 70% of fast passenger and car-passenger ferries are catamarans. About 300 semi-submersible drilling and auxiliary platforms operate at sea.

Some ships with outriggers are built, including the experimental ship Tritone (UK) and the first and second sister-ships of the series of Littoral Combat Ships (US). About 70 small waterplan area ships whose hulls have a smaller cross section at the waterplane than below the surface exist.

Multihull ships can be classified by the number of hulls, by their arrangement and by their shapes and sizes.

The first multihull vessels were Austronesian canoes. They hollowed out logs to make canoes and stabilized them by attaching outriggers to prevent them from capsizing. This led to the proa, catamaran, and trimaran plus various outriggers throughout the Pacific.