IALA Region A/B

Question 1

What are the characteristics of a Stbd hand lateral mark in IALA region A?

Answer 1

• Cone, pillar or spar.
• Cone top mark.
• Green mark.
• Leave it to stbd when following direction of buoyage.
• Green light, any rhythm apart from 2+1.

Question 2

What are the characteristics of a Port hand lateral mark in IALA region A?

Answer 2

• Can, pillar or spar.
• Can top mark.
• Red mark.
• Leave it to port when following direction of buoyage.
• Red light, any rhythm apart from 2+1.

Question 3

What are the characteristics of a Stbd hand lateral mark in IALA region B?

Answer 3

• Cone, pillar or spar.
• Cone top mark.
• Red mark.
• Leave it to port when following direction of buoyage.
• Red light, any rhythm apart from 2+1.

Question 4

What are the characteristics of a Port hand lateral mark in IALA region B?

Answer 4

• Can, pillar or spar.
• Can top mark.
• Green mark.
• Leave it to port when following direction of buoyage.
• Green light, any rhythm apart from 2+1.

Question 5

What are the characteristics of a preferred channel to Stbd mark in IALA region A?

Answer 5

• Cone, pillar or spar.
• Cone top mark.
• Green, red, Green mark.
• Leave it to stbd when following direction of buoyage.
• Green light, rhythm 2+1.

Question 6

What are the characteristics of a preferred channel to Port mark in IALA region A?

Answer 6

• Cone, pillar or spar.
• Cone top mark.
• Green, red, green mark.
• Leave it to stbd when following direction of buoyage.
• Green light, rhythm 2+1.

Question 7

What are the characteristics of a preferred channel to Stbd mark in IALA region A?

Answer 7

• Can, pillar or spar.
• Can top mark.
• Red, green, red mark.
• Leave it to port when following direction of buoyage.
• Red light, rhythm 2+1.

Question 8

What are the characteristics of a preferred channel to port mark in IALA region B?

Answer 8

• Cone, pillar or spar.
• Cone top mark.
• Red, Green, green mark.
• Leave it to stbd when following direction of buoyage.
• Red light, rhythm 2+1.

Question 9

What are the characteristics of a preferred channel to STBD mark in IALA region B?

Answer 9

• Can, pillar or spar.
• Can top mark.
• Green, red, green mark.
• Leave it to port when following direction of buoyage.
• Green light, rhythm 2+1.

Question 10

Why do we have Cardinal marks?

Answer 10

To indicate where the mariner can find safe water, they are placed in relation to a danger so that their name indicates the direction in which safe water lies.

Question 11

What are the characteristics of a North Cardinal mark?

Answer 11

• Pillar or spar.
• Black, yellow mark.
• Two black cones, apex pointing upwards.
• White light, Continuous quick/very quick flashes

Question 12

What are the characteristics of a South Cardinal mark?

Answer 12

• Pillar or spar.
• Yellow, black mark.
• Two black cones, apex pointing downwards.
• White light, 3 Quick flashes in 10 seconds or 3 very quick flashes in 5 seconds.

Question 13

What are the characteristics of a East Cardinal mark?

Answer 13

• Pillar or spar.
• Black, yellow, black mark.
• Two black cones, apex pointing away from each other (egg) .
• White light, 6 Quick flashes + 1 long flash in 15 seconds or 6 very quick flashes + 1long flash in 10 seconds.

Question 14

What are the characteristics of a West Cardinal mark?

Answer 14

• Pillar or spar.
• Yellow, black, yellow mark.
• Two black cones, apex pointing towards each other (wine glass).
• White light, 9 Quick flashes in 15 seconds or 9 very quick flashes in 10 seconds.

Question 15

What are the characteristics of a Isolated danger mark?

Answer 15

• Pillar or spar.
• Black, red, black mark (bands).
• Top mark, two black balls in a vertical line.
• White light, group flash 2 (fuck-off).

Question 16

When are Isolated Danger marks used?

Answer 16

When there is and isolated danger in limited extent, which have navigable water all around them.

Question 17

What are the characteristics of a Safe Water mark?

Answer 17

• Pillar, spar or spherical.
• red and white striped mark.
• Top mark single red sphere.
• White light Flashing; Morse code A, Isophase, Occulting or long flash every ten seconds.

Question 18

When are Isolated Safe Water used?

Answer 18

To indicate that there is a navigable water all around a mark, commonly as a landfall buoy, to indicate the best point of passage under a bridge or as a mid-channel mark.

Question 19

What is occulting?

Answer 19

Light mostly on rather than off (Dark arts).

Question 20

What is isophase?

Answer 20

Light flashing for equal periods.

Question 21

When are Special marks used?

Answer 21

To indicate a special area or feature, the nature of which is apparent by referring to a chart:
- ODAS buoys (Automated buoy used for collecting and transmitting meteorological, scientific, and oceanographic data in real time.
- Channel within a channel.
- Recreation areas.
- Cables, pipelines and outfalls.
- Spoil areas.
- Military exercise areas.

Question 22

What are the characteristics of a Special mark?

Answer 22

• Can, cone, pillar, spar or spherical mark (has to be implemented correctly to the direction of buoyage.
• Yellow mark.
• Yellow ‘X’ top mark (if fitted).
• Yellow light using any rhythm that is not used for white lights. (ODAS = 5 Flashes every 20s)

Question 23

When are Emergency Wreck Marker Buoys used?

Answer 23

To provide a highly conspicuous AtoN for new wrecks, until they have been:
- Adequately surveyed.
- Adequately Marked.
- Adequately marked.