🔍 Key Concepts

• Regulatory buoys and their shapes/colors in the Uniform State Waterway Marking System (USWMS) / Lateral Aids system used in the U.S. • The meaning of the four basic orange symbols: diamond, diamond with cross, circle, and square/rectangle on white buoys with orange bands. • Which symbol is used specifically to show controlled or restricted operations (speed limits, no wake, etc.) rather than danger, exclusion, or information.

💭 Think About

• For each option, recall what that symbol normally tells a boater: does it warn of danger, forbid entry, give general information, or impose a specific operating condition like a speed limit? • Think of common examples you’ve seen on lakes or rivers: what symbol appears on a buoy that says “Slow – No Wake” or “5 MPH”? Is that the same symbol that appears on “Keep Out” buoys? • Decide which symbol best matches the phrase “operating restrictions are in effect”, not “danger,” “no entry,” or “information only.”

✅ Before You Answer

• Match the phrase operating restrictions with situations like speed limits, wake limits, or ski zones – what symbol is used there? • Verify that diamond with a cross is associated with areas where vessels are not allowed at all (exclusion zones), not merely restricted operations. • Confirm that open-faced diamond is tied to danger/hazard warnings, and rectangle/square relates to general information or directions, then see which remaining symbol fits operating rules.