Navigation General · Radar Aids

On a radar display, an activated SART (search and rescue transponder) appears as:

Explanation

When interrogated by an X-band (3 cm) radar, a SART replies with a series of 12 dots that appear as a line of equally spaced blips radiating outward from its position, leading rescuers straight to a survival craft or person in the water.

Authority: GMDSS; SART operation

Practice the full Navigation General bank

Free spaced-repetition quizzing across 2190 USCG exam questions — it schedules your reviews so the ones you miss come back until they stick.

Related Navigation General questions