Summer Draft
Encyclopedia
Summer draft is a naval
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...

 term for the worst-case loaded draft a ship can have. This draft is corrected for the worst-case seasonal conditions (summer in this case). During summer the water is warmer, and thus less dense and expands slightly: see Thermal expansion
Thermal expansion
Thermal expansion is the tendency of matter to change in volume in response to a change in temperature.When a substance is heated, its particles begin moving more and thus usually maintain a greater average separation. Materials which contract with increasing temperature are rare; this effect is...

. This makes ships float deeper in the water. Summer draft is the opposite of Light ship condition
Lightship
Lightship may refer to:* Lightvessel, a permanently moored ship that has light beacons mounted as navigational aids* Light displacement, a displacement figure that measures a ship complete in all respects, but without consumables, stores, cargo, crew, and effects*Lightship, a type of blimp operated...

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