🔍 Key Concepts

• IALA Maritime Buoyage System shapes and colors • How spherical buoys are used to mark one specific side of a channel or hazard • Difference between numbers vs letters on buoys (lateral marks)

💭 Think About

• Think about what a spherical (ball-shaped) buoy usually indicates in the lateral system—does it mark the port side, starboard side, safe water, or something else? • Ask yourself which side of a channel is normally associated with this buoy shape in your region (Region B in the U.S.). • Consider whether shape is tied to color, and whether numbers vs letters are tied to side or type of mark.

✅ Before You Answer

• Verify which buoy shape (can, nun, sphere) is associated with which side of the channel in U.S. (Region B) lateral marks. • Check how colors (red/green) and markings (numbers/letters) are normally assigned in the lateral system. • Confirm whether a spherical buoy is used as a lateral mark or for another special purpose in the system you are studying.