Watchkeeping

Watchkeeping or watchstanding is the assignment of sailors to specific roles on a ship to operate it continuously.

These assignments, also known at sea as watches, are constantly active as they are considered essential to the safe operation of the vessel and also allow the ship to respond to emergencies and other situations quickly.

On a typical seafaring vessel, be it naval or merchant, personnel "keep a watch" in various locations and duties across the ship, such as the bridge and engine room.

A wide variety of types of watches have developed due to the different needs aboard merchant and naval vessels.

Watch durations vary between vessels due to some reasons and restrictions; some watch systems aim to ensure that each team takes turns to work late at night, while other systems ensure the same team consistently works at the same hours every day.

[6] Often, the dog watches are set at dinner time to allow the entire crew to be fed in short order.

This gives the sailors a longer sleeping period than the traditional two-watch system, while still maintaining the ability for the ship to function.

On merchant ships, watchkeepers typically keep watch for six periods of four consecutive hours.

This enables the second officer, who is the ship's navigator, to take morning and evening star sights.

The reason for this is to enable the chief mate to assign work to the deck gang before the ship's day begins, and to inspect it before going on watch at 1600 hours.