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The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) Sea Areas are regions a select distance offshore of any country that maintains coast stations. The purpose of the sea areas are to create zones in which SOLAS ships are required to carry specialized equipment for the sea area they operate in. The sea areas are as follows:

Sea Area A1:An area within the radiotelephone coverage of at least one VHF coast station in which continuous digital selective calling (Ch.70/156.525 MHz) alerting and radiotelephony services are available. Such an area could extend typically 30 nautical miles (56 km) to 40 nautical miles (74 km) from the Coast Station. The latest report of the US GMDSS task force contains a report from Joe Hersey from the USCG regarding US GMDSS Sea Areas: Declaration of Sea Area A1. Joe Hersey reported that with the essential completion of the Rescue 21 Project, the Coast Guard plans to declare Sea Area A1 operational. Sea Area A1 is created when there is a continuous shore watch on the DSC Calling and Distress channel 70. Declaration of Sea Area A1 will not include Alaska but will include the Continental U.S. coasts, the Great Lakes, Guam, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. According to provisions of the FCC Rules, a declaration of Sea Area A1 will require that all vessels mandatorily equipped with VHF, upgrade to VHF-DSC within one year. Sea Area A2: An area, excluding Sea Area A1, within the radiotelephone coverage of at least one MF coast station in which continuous DSC (2187.5 kHz) alerting and radiotelephony services are available. For planning purposes, this area typically extends to up to 180 nautical miles (330 km) offshore during daylight hours, but would exclude any A1 designated areas. In practice, satisfactory coverage may often be achieved out to around 400 nautical miles (740 km) offshore during night time.c. Sea Area A2 (MF Coverage). Joe Hersey also announced a new decision that the coastal Medium Frequency safety watch on 2182 kHz and its DSC counterpart 2187.5 kHz will no longer be watched at most Sector commands because funding is not available to upgrade the system which suffers from deteriorated antennas and ground planes. Watches on 2182 kHz and 2187.5 kHz will continue at the Communications Stations and selected Sectors which support the fishing fleet. Sector weather Broadcasts on 2670 kHz will also cease except for those Sectors retaining the 2 MHz watch to support the fishing fleet.

Sea Area A3: An area,excluding sea areas A1 and A2, within the coverage of an Inmarsat geostationary satellite. This area lies between about latitude 76 Degree NORTH and SOUTH, but excludes A1 and/or A2 designated areas. Inmarsat guarantees their system will work between 70 South and 70 North though it will often work to 76 degrees South or North. The SEA 300-A3 Table Top GMDSS Console System provides a compact and concise solution to GMDSS requirements for SEA Area A3. The SEA 300-A3 console system features the reliability of the SEA 330 GMD 300 Watt MF/HF SSB radiotelephone and Inmarsat-C satellite communications system. The Inmarsat-C and radio telex software are operated through the dedicated message terminals. The SEA 7000G SEACALL MF/HF DSC controller, SEA 7001G SEAWATCH watch receiver, and SEA 3000G SEATOR radio telex modem complete the MF/HF DSC and radio telex systems. Also provided with the SEA 300-A3 console system is one SEA 6042 Inmarsat-C remote distress alarm and two SEA 7157 DSC/VHF radios. The SEA 300-A3 console system includes an integral GPS receiver option, battery charger, and all necessary power supplies. The main console is also available as a factory pre wired, assembled and tested system, resulting in a very efficient installation. Ease of installation and service, combined with proven reliability, backed by SEA's two year limited warranty make the SEA 300-A3 Table Top GMDSS Console System an exceptional value. SEA is the producer of quality marine communications equipment, with nearly 25 years of manufacturing experience in the United States. It is important when considering the purchase of GMDSS equipment that not only does it meet your exacting standards, but that it comes from a manufacturer who can supply parts and service on a timely basis. This is why SEA should be considered the manufacturer of choice. http://www.seacomcorp.com/marine/gmdsspro.htm

Sea Area A4: An area outside Sea Areas A1, A2 and A3 is called Sea Area A4. This is essentially the polar regions, north and south of about 76 degrees of latitude, excluding any A1 or A2 areas. The required equipment for this sea area is an HF radio with DSC and distress capabilities. the remaining sea area. This area is covered by HF coastal stations. An EPIRB and SART are always required. Every ship subject to the communications act or the safety of life at sea (SOLAS) convention must comply with GMDSS. These vessels include: All passenger ships regardless of size Cargo ships of 300 gross tons and upward.

EPIRB: An Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon or EPIRB is used to alert search and rescue services in the event of an emergency.It does this by transmitting a coded message on the 406 MHz distress frequency via satellite and earth stations to the nearest rescue co-ordination centre. Some EPIRBs also have built-in GPS which enables the rescue service.Beginning January 1, 2007, older Emergency Positioning Indication Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) operating on the 121.5 MHz and 243 MHz frequencies will be prohibited from use by the U.S. Coast Guard. Commercial boats operating more than three miles off shore will be required to carry 406 MHz digital EPIRBs. In Hawaii, recreational vessels operating more than one mile offshore, unless otherwise equipped with a VHF radio, will be required to carry a USCG approved EPIRB as well. This is a phase out that has been in the works since 1999 when the International Cospas-Sarsat Program announced it would terminate satellite processing of the 121.5 and 243 MHz frequencies emitted by older EPIRBs. The newer 406 MHz system greatly improves the functionality and accuracy of EPIRB units. The Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation (DOBOR) is encouraging all boaters to employ the new technology.

COSPAS-SARSAT is an international satellite-based search and rescue system established by the U.S., Russia, Canada and France to locate emergency radio beacons transmitting on the frequencies 121.5, 243 and 406 MHz. The termination date for use of the 121.5 and 243 MHz signals by COSPAS-SARSAT is February 1, 2009. The new 406 MHz system is vastly superior and provides greater accuracy by using GPS in fixing a position in an emergency. Differences between the systems include: -5 watts of power in the new EPIRB as compared to 0.1 watt with the old technology; -Global coverage with the new system compared to 2/3 global coverage; -Beacon ID combined with registration data allows for rapid verification and launch or standown. With the old system, alerts are anonymous and no data is transmitted about the beacon owner; -1-3 nautical mile accuracy for non GPS units. Better than 300 feet accuracy if GPS equipped. The old system has an accuracy range of 12-15 nautical miles; -Survivor location limits search to 25 square nautical miles. The old system limits search area to 500 square nautical miles; -Low false alerts, about 1 in 12. In the old system, fewer than 2 in 1000 alerts are legitimate distress calls. EPIRB manufacturers have been making 406 MHz units since 2003. Prices for the new EPIRBs range from around $600 for the CAT I manual beacons to over $1,100 for the automatic CAT II units For boaters that have chosen to equip their boats with radios as opposed to EPIRBs, DOBOR recommends that any boater traveling beyond the reliable range of a VHF radio, about 25 miles, carry a 406 MHz EPIRB onboard their vessel.

SART: The AIS-SART is a self-contained radio device used to locate a survival craft or distressed vessel by sending updated position reports using a standard Automatic Identification System (AIS) class-A position report. The position and time synchronization of the AIS-SART are derived from a built in GNSS receiver (e.g. GPS).[1] Shipboard Global Maritime Distress Safety System (GMDSS) installations include one or more search and rescue locating devices. These devices may be either an AIS-SART (AIS Search and Rescue Transmitter) (from January 1, 2010), or a radar-SART (Search and Rescue Transponder). The AIS-SART derives position and time synchronization from a built in GNSS receiver. Once per minute, the position is sent as a series of eight identical position report messages (four on 161.975 MHz and four on 162.025 MHz). This scheme creates a high probability that at least one of the messages is sent on the highest point of a wave. AIS SARTs are typically cylindrical and brightly colored. A typical model is 251mm (about 10 inches) high and weighs 450g (about a pound).[2] The specification (IEC 61097-14 Ed 1.0) for AIS-SART was developed by the IEC's TC80 AIS work group. AIS-SART was added to the GMDSS regulations effective January 1, 2010.[3]