Our Blog
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🎄 Top 10 Christmas Wishes of Seafarers in 2025
The holiday season is here again- but for thousands of seafarers around the world, Christmas often means spending long nights at sea instead of cozy celebrations on land. While families enjoy festive dinners and holiday lights, many crew members are navigating rough waters, ensuring that global trade continues smoothly. And while gifts, chocolates, and company…
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🧭 How to Calculate Wheel-Over Position (WOP): Two Proven Methods for Safe Course Alteration
The Wheel-Over Position (WOP) is the exact point where a vessel must begin applying rudder to initiate a smooth and safe turn from its current course to the next. This position ensures the ship follows the planned track without overshooting the waypoint or cutting the turn too early. In practical navigation, the WOP is marked…
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Understanding Ship Security Levels: What Happens at Each Stage?
ISPS Code and ship security levels are probably two topics that stuck with me when I was still in a maritime college, perhaps because I witnessed the 9/11 bombings on TV and the consequences that followed. So when I got on board, adjusting and implementing the theoretical knowledge in my arsenal wasn’t hard. Not that…
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🧭 How to Calculate Sunrise and Sunset Using the Nautical Almanac (With Example)
During my first cadetship aboard a tanker, I was anchored off a quiet coast when the second mate gave me a surprise task: “Cadet, calculate our sunrise and sunset times using the Nautical Almanac.” No GPS. No Navtex. No smartphone. That task sparked my deeper understanding of celestial navigation, and how seafarers used to solve…
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12 Signs That You’re Dragging Anchor and What to Do About It
Every seasoned seafarer knows how precarious a dragging anchor can be. It’s one thing that keeps captains awake at night, especially when the weather gets bad, and you’re anchored close to the shore or with other vessels nearby. If your anchor drags, it’s not just the Master’s problem; it’s the whole crew’s. Damage to property,…
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⚓ Anchor Swinging Circle: Accurate Methods Every Deck Officer Must Know
When anchoring in congested waters like Singapore, Gibraltar, or Ijmuiden, every meter counts. One miscalculated anchor swinging circle can lead to dangerous near-misses or even collisions. That’s why calculating your swinging circle accurately, not just quickly, is critical. In this guide, we’ll show you two methods: the Instant Method (ideal for open anchorages) and the…
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How Much Anchor Scope is Needed? We Break Down the Formulas
All ships, no matter how big or small, have anchors installed to firmly fix the vessel’s position when needed. With this, they must also know the proper scope of the chain to attain maximum holding power. It was my first anchoring on the bridge when our captain asked me about the right scope for that…
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MARINA-Approved Practical Assessment Centers for Ratings & Officers 2024
Assessment Centers, or ACs, are maritime institutions accredited and approved by MARINA to conduct practical assessments. Practical Assessment is the method used to assess a candidate by giving a close-to-reality situation on board where they must apply their theoretical knowledge. Officers and Ratings undergo such assessments to prove their competencies and be given certificates. Here…
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⚓ 30 Types of Marine Buoys & Their Meaning in Maritime Navigation
Buoys are critical navigation aids that help seafarers safely transit through coastal waters, channels, and hazardous zones. From marking safe passage to indicating danger, these floating markers guide ships day and night. In this guide, we’ll break down the 30 most common types of buoys you’ll encounter at sea, organized by purpose and system, so…
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15 Things You Must Do 5 Days Before Joining Your Ship for Work
Working on ships is totally different from working on land. You are cut off from the rest of the world when you’re out there in the middle of the ocean and you can’t do anything in case some problems happen. For peace of mind, you need to do these things before signing on any vessel.…