🔍 Key Concepts

• Anchor holding power and how it changes with different seabeds • Differences between sand and mud as bottom types (shear strength, consistency) • How fluke-type anchors are designed to work in firm vs. soft bottoms

💭 Think About

• Think about whether an anchor needs a firm or very soft bottom to develop its best holding power. Which does sand or mud represent? • Consider what happens to the flukes of an anchor in very soft mud: do they get a good bite, or do they tend to sink in and lose effectiveness? • Ask yourself: in which bottom type do ships normally report the most reliable holding—clean sand or soft mud?

✅ Before You Answer

• Identify which bottom (sand or mud) generally provides better shear resistance against dragging. • Consider whether an anchor can become over-embedded in very soft mud and how that affects holding power. • Before choosing, be sure you’ve decided: does the anchor usually hold more strongly in sand or in mud?