Examples of Safe Water Marks A safe water mark, as defined by the

International Association of Lighthouse Authorities The International Organization for Marine Aids to Navigation (IALA), previously known as International Association of Lighthouse Authorities, is an association founded in 1957 to collect and provide nautical expertise and advice. IALA is also kn ...

, is a

sea mark A sea mark, also seamark and navigation mark, is a form of aid to navigation and pilotage that identifies the approximate position of a maritime channel, hazard, or administrative area to allow boats, ships, and seaplanes to navigate safely. ...

used in maritime

pilotage Piloting or pilotage is the process of navigating on water or in the air using fixed points of reference on the sea or on land, usually with reference to a nautical chart or aeronautical chart to obtain a fix of the position of the vessel or air ...

to indicate the end of a channel. They usually imply that open, deep and safe water lies ahead. They are also used to indicate the start and end of a buoyed section of a continuous narrow channel; and a series of them may mark a safe route through shallow areas. It is therefore important to consult appropriate charts to determine their meaning in each location. They are also known as fairway buoys and clear water buoys. They are recognisable by their red-and-white vertical stripes and commonly bear a top sign in shape of a red ball. They either flash

Morse code Morse code is a telecommunications method which Character encoding, encodes Written language, text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called ''dots'' and ''dashes'', or ''dits'' and ''dahs''. Morse code i ...

"A" (di-dah), or one long flash, occulting (more light than dark) or isophase (equal light and dark) every 10 seconds (L Fl 10s).Haire, Penny.''Yachtmaster''. Royal Yachting Association, 2009, p. 61. In the United States, safe water marks are printed with the initials of their associated waterways or localities.

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