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Deck · 2,138 questions

General Navigation - USCG Exam Questions

Chart reading, the U.S. Aids to Navigation System, compass error, tides and currents, and the standard navigation publications.

Every question below is a real U.S. Coast Guard exam question with four choices. Answer one and the correct choice is revealed instantly, with the USCG reference and illustration where the question uses one.

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All General Navigation questions

Questions 201–300 of 2,138 · page 3 of 22

  1. #213 The light rhythm of Morse (A) is shown on __________.
  2. #214 The time required for a lighted aid to complete a full cycle of light changes is listed in the Light List as the __________.
  3. #217 The lock chamber is 600 feet X 110 feet. Your towboat is 150 feet X 35 feet. Which of these tows will require a double lockage?
  4. #218 The maximum distance at which a light may be seen under existing visibility conditions is called __________.
  5. #219 In illustration D044NG below, a pillar buoy is indicated by which letter? illustration
  6. #220 A special daymark is a __________.
  7. #221 Under the IALA-B Buoyage System, when entering from seaward a lateral system buoy to be left to port may display which of the topmarks shown in illust... illustration
  8. #222 You are approaching a vertical lift bridge. You know the span is fully open when __________.
  9. #223 The Light List shows that a navigational light has a nominal range of 5 miles and a height above water of 21 feet (6.4 meters). Your height of eye is...
  10. #224 Information about the pilotage available at Miami harbor may best be obtained from which publication?
  11. #225 An occulting light is one in which __________.
  12. #226 Lighted information markers show __________.
  13. #227 In illustration D044NG below, what type of buoy is indicated by the letter A? illustration
  14. #228 Clearance gauges at bridges indicate __________.
  15. #229 In the IALA Maritime Buoyage System, what is a red and white vertically-striped buoy used to indicate?
  16. #230 Buoys and day beacons exhibiting a yellow triangle or square painted on them are used __________.
  17. #231 In illustration D044NG below, what type of buoy is indicated by the letter D? illustration
  18. #232 The Light List indicates that a light has a nominal range of 20 miles and is 52 feet high. If the visibility is 12.0 miles and your height of eye is 2...
  19. #233 You are downbound approaching a lock and see 3 green lights in a vertical line. This indicates __________.
  20. #234 When using a Lambert conformal chart in high latitudes, angles such as bearings are measured in reference to __________.
  21. #235 The Light List shows a lighted aid to navigation on the left bank. This means that the light can be seen on the port side of a vessel __________.
  22. #236 A daymark used to indicate the starboard side of the channel when approaching from seaward will have the shape indicated by what letter in illustratio... illustration
  23. #237 In which country would you expect the channels to be marked with the IALA-B Buoyage System?
  24. #238 You are upbound approaching a lock and dam and see two green lights in a vertical line. This indicates __________.
  25. #239 In which country would you expect the channels to be marked with the IALA-B Buoyage System?
  26. #240 An orange and white buoy marking an area where operating restrictions are in effect will be marked with which symbol?
  27. #241 Which navigational mark may only be lettered?
  28. #242 Under the U.S. Aids to Navigation System, a lighted buoy with a spherical topmark marks __________.
  29. #243 You are in a buoyed channel at night and pass a lighted buoy with an irregular characteristic. You should report this to the __________.
  30. #244 You are steaming southward along the west coast of the United States when you sight a buoy showing a flashing green light. How should you pass this bu...
  31. #245 What is characteristic of an occulting light?
  32. #246 The IALA Buoyage Systems do NOT apply to __________.
  33. #247 In illustration D045NG below, what two shapes shown are used to indicate a preferred channel? illustration
  34. #248 The four standard light colors used for lighted aids to navigation are red, green, white, and __________.
  35. #249 A chart with a natural scale of 1:160,000 is classified as a __________.
  36. #250 You are approaching an open drawbridge and sound the proper signal. You receive no acknowledgment from the bridge. Which action should you take?
  37. #251 The Coast Guard Captain of the Port has excluded all traffic from a section of a port, while a regatta is taking place. The buoys marking this exclusi...
  38. #252 Navigational marks used for informational or regulatory purposes are __________.
  39. #253 A white buoy with an open-faced orange diamond on it indicates __________.
  40. #254 The scale on a chart is given as 1:5,000,000. This means that __________.
  41. #255 In very high latitudes, the most practical chart projection is the __________.
  42. #256 An orange and white buoy indicating a vessel-exclusion area will be marked with what symbol?
  43. #257 Mean high water is the reference plane used for __________.
  44. #258 Information markers, when lighted, will display __________.
  45. #259 Which conic projection chart features straight lines which closely approximate a great circle?
  46. #260 White lights may be found on __________.
  47. #261 Under the U.S. Aids to Navigation System, a yellow buoy is a __________.
  48. #262 In the U.S. Aids to Navigation System, lateral aids as seen entering from seaward will display lights with which characteristic?
  49. #263 Lighted white and orange buoys must show which color light?
  50. #264 What daymark shape is used in the lateral system?
  51. #265 Under the Uniform State Waterway Marking System a mooring buoy is painted __________.
  52. #266 All aids to navigation listed in the Mississippi River System Light List are shown as miles from a reference point and on the __________.
  53. #267 A white buoy with a blue band is __________.
  54. #268 A mooring buoy, if lighted, shows which color light?
  55. #270 Which topmark shown in illustration D023NG below identifies an isolated danger? illustration
  56. #271 What is NOT found in the Mississippi River System Light List?
  57. #272 On an Army Corps of Engineers navigation map, each mile A.H.P. on the Lower Mississippi River is marked by a __________.
  58. #273 What does the symbol shown in illustration D033NG below indicate on a chart? illustration
  59. #274 A buoy marking a wreck will show a(n) __________.
  60. #275 You sight a buoy fitted with a double-sphere topmark. If sighted at night, this buoy would show a __________.
  61. #276 What is the light phase characteristic of a lighted isolated-danger mark?
  62. #277 Buoys which mark isolated dangers are painted with alternating _________.
  63. #278 The Light List indicates that a dayboard is a type KGW. You should __________.
  64. #279 You have been informed that dredging operations may be underway in your vicinity. Which buoy indicates the dredging area?
  65. #280 A lighted buoy to be left to starboard, when entering a U.S. port from seaward, shall have a __________.
  66. #281 Under the IALA-B Buoyage System, when entering from seaward a lateral system buoy to be left to starboard may display which of the topmarks shown in i... illustration
  67. #282 When displayed under a single-span fixed bridge, red lights indicate __________.
  68. #283 Some lights used as aids to marine navigation have a red sector to indicate a danger area. How are the limits of a colored sector of light listed in t...
  69. #284 A buoy with a composite group-flashing light indicates a(n) __________.
  70. #285 When approaching a preferred-channel buoy, the best channel is NOT indicated by the __________.
  71. #286 The annual change in variation for an area can be found in __________.
  72. #288 The luminous range of a light takes into account the __________.
  73. #289 How is a navigation light identified on an Army Corps of Engineers navigation map?
  74. #290 A lighthouse is 120 feet (36.6 meters) high and the light has a nominal range of 18 miles. Your height of eye is 42 feet (12.8). If the visibility is...
  75. #291 A lateral system buoy displaying a quick light __________.
  76. #292 A safe water mark may be __________.
  77. #293 A preferred-channel buoy will show a __________.
  78. #295 A lighted preferred-channel buoy may show a __________.
  79. #296 Which buoy is NOT numbered?
  80. #297 When trying to sight a lighthouse you notice a glare from a town in the background. The range at which the light may be sighted due to this glare is _...
  81. #299 On a chart, the characteristic of the light on a lighthouse is shown as flashing white with a red sector. The red sector __________.
  82. #300 Preferred channel buoys indicate the preferred channel to transit by __________.
  83. #301 In the U.S. Aids to Navigation System, red and green horizontally-banded buoys mark __________.
  84. #302 You wish to measure the distance on a Mercator chart between a point in latitude 43°30'N and a point in latitude 40°30'N. To measure 30 miles at a tim...
  85. #303 Red lights may appear on __________.
  86. #304 As you enter a channel from seaward in a U.S. port, the numbers on the starboard side buoys __________.
  87. #305 If your vessel must pass through a draw during a scheduled closure period, what signal should you sound to request the opening of the draw?
  88. #306 Which buoy may be odd numbered?
  89. #307 Your vessel is leaving New York harbor in dense fog. As the vessel slowly proceeds toward sea, you sight a green can buoy on the starboard bow. Which...
  90. #308 When entering from seaward, a buoy displaying a composite group (2+1) flashing red light indicates __________.
  91. #309 When entering from seaward, a buoy displaying a single-flashing red light indicates __________.
  92. #310 When entering from seaward, a buoy displaying a single-flashing red light indicates __________.
  93. #311 When outbound from a U.S. port, a buoy displaying a flashing red light indicates __________.
  94. #312 If your vessel were proceeding down river (descending), a green square marker with a green reflector border on the right bank would be a __________.
  95. #313 As your vessel is heading southward along the east coast of the United States, you encounter a buoy showing a red flashing light. How should you pass...
  96. #314 "Proceeding from seaward" for the purpose of the direction of buoying offshore, lateral system buoys would be proceeding __________.
  97. #315 If the main channel under a bridge is marked with lights of the lateral system the adjacent bridge piers should be marked with __________.
  98. #316 You are steaming in a westerly direction along the Gulf Coast. You see ahead of you a lighted buoy showing a red isophase light. Which action should y...
  99. #317 Which buoy may be even numbered?
  100. #318 Which buoy may be odd numbered?

General Navigation questions: what to expect

Q How many General Navigation questions are in the Deck pool?

There are 2,138 General Navigation questions on this site, every one released by the U.S. Coast Guard or taken from the National Maritime Center's sample examinations, with its correct answer. The exam draws its General Navigation module from the same pool.

Q What score do I need to pass the General Navigation module?

Most USCG exam modules, including General Navigation, require 70 percent to pass. Rules of the Road modules require 90 percent.

Q Are these the real USCG General Navigation exam questions?

Yes. They are the published U.S. Coast Guard questions, matched to the National Maritime Center's 2026 sample examinations. Answer any question to see the correct choice, the USCG reference and the illustration where the question uses one.

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About the Deck question pool

The Deck pool holds the current U.S. Coast Guard questions for every deck credential, from Able Seaman and the OUPV six-pack up to unlimited Master. Each question is multiple choice with four options, graded instantly, with the USCG reference shown where one exists.