🔍 Key Concepts

• Center of buoyancy (B) is the center of the underwater volume of displacement • How the underwater shape/volume changes when a vessel or MODU heels (inclines) slightly • Relationship between center of buoyancy (B) and metacenter (M) for small angles of heel

💭 Think About

• Visualize the MODU upright: where is the underwater volume concentrated, and where is its center of buoyancy? Now imagine a small heel – which side has more underwater volume? • Think about whether the center of buoyancy follows the submerged shape or stays fixed to the structure of the MODU itself. • Ask yourself: for small angles, does B jump to M, stay put, or move gradually along an arc as the underwater volume shifts?

✅ Before You Answer

• Make sure you link center of buoyancy to center of the displaced (underwater) volume, not to the centerline of the hull or deck • Confirm in your mind which side (low or high) has increased immersion when the MODU heels slightly • Remember that the metacenter (M) is a geometric construction used for stability, not the point where B suddenly moves to at small angles