Radar Basics
A working guide to marine radar: how it builds its picture, how to read motion and risk of collision from it, how to tune it, and where it goes blind.
Edward Caine
Dead Reckoning vs GPS
They are not rivals. GPS gives where the ship is; dead reckoning gives where she should be. How the fix, DR, and estimated position fit, and why both still run today.
Steward Job Description
A clear-eyed guide to the steward role at sea: what the job involves day to day, the certificates it requires, the pay and conditions, and where it can lead.
Berthing and Unberthing
Bringing a ship alongside is the most exacting handling she does. The pivot point, the tide, the tugs, the lines that hold her, and how she springs off again
Anchoring Procedures
Holding a ship in place is more than dropping a weight. How crews choose the ground, lay out enough cable, set the anchor, and keep watch against a drag.
Seafaring Phrases in Movies
Hollywood loves a sea command. A mariner sorts the famous lines into the ones still piped on a real bridge, the age-of-sail relics, and the pure invention.
Abandon Ship Procedure
Leaving the ship is the last resort, not the first. Here is the order it follows, from the general alarm to the survival craft, and why the master alone decides.
ECDIS Explained: What It Is and How It Works
The electronic chart has replaced the chart table as the heart of the modern bridge. Here is what ECDIS is, how it works, and how to make it the anti-grounding tool it was built to be.
Flooding and Damage Control
A breach is only the beginning. What decides whether a ship survives is how the crew holds her watertight boundaries and fights water’s pull on her stability.
Man Overboard Response Procedure
When someone goes over the side the ship cannot stop quickly. Knowing the turns, the cold-water clock, and how to recover a casualty safely saves the life.