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Aurelia



Joined: 21 Aug 2009
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City/Region: Gig Harbor
State or Province: WA
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PostPosted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 7:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

A recent example of why having safety gear attached to you could be a lifesaver.

Do you have a VHF on you?



http://www.cheknews.ca/tragedy-averted-off-race-rocks-thanks-to-marine-radio-122683/

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Greg, Cindie & Aven
Gig Harbor
Aurelia - 25 Cruiser sold 2012
Ari - 19 Cruiser sold 2023
currently exploring with "Lia", 17 ft Bullfrog Supersport Pilothouse
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hardee



Joined: 30 Oct 2006
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City/Region: Sequim
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C-Dory Year: 2005
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PostPosted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 11:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

YES!

Thanks Greg, good reminder. I had heard a bit of this on the news and now it's nice to get more of the story.

Seems like 9 people in a 21 foot boat, with complementary dive gear might be pushing the limit just a bit, maybe.

Harvey
SleepyC Moon


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garyf



Joined: 01 Sep 2015
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City/Region: Lincoln
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C-Dory Year: 1991
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PostPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 5:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

hardee wrote:
This link does not work anymore, but clicking on "products" will bring up the green lasers. When I first saw these I thought I really liked the idea of having one in a ditch bag. With the recent news coverage of the laser flashings of: aircraft, news helicopters, and even WA state ferries, we obviously know they can attract attention >>=====> Will it land us in a bad place?


No... for a couple of reasons. The lasers made by this company are specifically designed to be signalers - they fan out over distance, and therefore are not concentrated enough beyond a few feet to pose a hazard to anyone. This fanned out beam also makes it significantly easier to "paint" a target that you're trying to signal. It would be very difficult to get someone's attention with a regular laser pointer while bobbing in the water... you have to be really accurate for them to see it. With the fanned out beam, you've got a broad brush to sweep across the area of the plane, helicopter, etc.

And... the Federal law that makes it illegal to point a laser at a plane, etc has a provision that allows for signaling in emergencies:

18 U.S. Code § 39A - Aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft

(c) Exceptions.—This section does not prohibit aiming a beam of a laser pointer at an aircraft, or the flight path of such an aircraft, by—

(3) by an individual using a laser emergency signaling device to send an emergency distress signal.


BTW... I personally prefer the red models due to battery life. The green model burns through batteries a lot faster. The red models still have plenty of attention-getting ability. The green beam has greater range, but the range of the red should be plenty, I think. Probably the biggest advantage of the green beam is you can see the beam itself in the air (at night) a lot easier than the red beam, and that might help you aim. Aiming with the red beam isn't horribly difficult - but, like anything, you should spend some time getting familiarized with it when you first get it.
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hardee



Joined: 30 Oct 2006
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PostPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 12:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Gary, thanks for your post and the info. I tried to use the "links" to get the rest of the quotes, but then discovered you just put them in blue for emphasis I guess.

Would you mind posting the source link for this:
"18 U.S. Code § 39A "

I would like to explore that some more.

On the colors; my understanding is that the green is "less" liable to be harmful if caught in the eye than the red.

Harvey
SleepyC Moon

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garyf



Joined: 01 Sep 2015
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PostPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 1:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/39A

Spectrum-wise, green might be a better color... I'm not sure. I'm guessing your point is that red is closer to infrared? Many green lasers actually emit a significant amount of infrared due to the internal conversion steps they go through to get to the color green.

The green lasers are generally more powerful, though, and I think that'd trump the spectrum point anyway. I have a green laser that can light a match and/or piece of paper. I'm not aware of a commonly available red laser pointer or signaller that can do that.
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AstoriaDave



Joined: 31 Oct 2005
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PostPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 4:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Got curious about which color laser might be more hazardous to the eye. I suspect, from scanning the link below, that the power of the laser might be the more important consideration. The link definitely contains more than I want to know!

http://www2.lbl.gov/ehs/safety/lasers/bioeffects.shtml

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hardee



Joined: 30 Oct 2006
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City/Region: Sequim
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PostPosted: Fri Nov 20, 2015 12:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Informative link. Lots of info, sounds like the green might actually be more dangerous than the red given the same power -- has to do with the color filtration, if I understand that right.

With all the sightings by pilots they are getting pretty good at pinpointing the source, which might not be a bad thing if you are drifting around in the ocean someplace.

Harvey
SleepyC Moon

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