Global Maritime Distress Safety System
Encyclopedia
The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) is an internationally agreed-upon set of safety procedures, types of equipment, and communication protocols used to increase safety and make it easier to rescue distressed ships, boats and aircraft.
GMDSS consists of several systems, some of which are new, but many of which have been in operation for many years. The system is intended to perform the following functions: alerting (including position determination of the unit in distress), search and rescue
coordination, locating (homing), maritime safety information broadcasts, general communications, and bridge-to-bridge communications. Specific radio carriage requirements depend upon the ship's area of operation, rather than its tonnage
. The system also provides redundant means of distress alerting, and emergency sources of power.
Recreational vessels do not need to comply with GMDSS radio carriage requirements, but will increasingly use the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) VHF radios. Offshore vessels may elect to equip themselves further. Vessels under 300 Gross tonnage
(GT) are not subject to GMDSS requirements.
is an international satellite
-based search and rescue system, established by Canada, France, the United States, and Russia. These four countries jointly helped develop the 406 MHz Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon
(EPIRB), an element of the GMDSS designed to operate with Cospas-Sarsat system. These automatic-activating EPIRBs, now required on SOLAS
ships, commercial fishing vessels, and all passenger ships, are designed to transmit to alert rescue coordination centers via the satellite system from anywhere in the world. The original COSPAS / SARSAT system used Polar orbiting satellites but in recent years the system has been expanded to also include 4 geostationary satellites. Newest designs incorporate GPS
receivers to transmit highly accurate positions (within about 20 metres)of the distress position. The original COSPAS / SARSAT satellites could calculate EPIRB position to within about 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) by using Doppler techniques. By the end of 2010 EPIRB manufacturers may be offering AIS
(Automatic Identification System) enabled beacons.
The service-ability of these items are checked monthly and annually and have limited battery shelf life between 2 to 5 years using mostly Lithium type batteries. 406 MHz EPIRB's transmit a registration number which is linked to a database of information about the vessel.
is an international, automated system for instantly distributing maritime safety information (MSI) which includes navigational warnings, weather forecasts and weather warnings, search and rescue notices and similar information to ships. A small, low-cost and self-contained "smart" printing radio receiver is installed on the bridge, or the place from where the ship is navigated, and checks each incoming message to see if it has been received during an earlier transmission, or if it is of a category of no interest to the ship's master. The frequency of transmission of these messages is 518 kHz in English, while 490 kHz is sometime used to broadcast in a local language.
The messages are coded with a header code identified by the using single letters of the alphabet to represent broadcasting stations, type of messages, and followed by two figures indicating the serial number of the message.
For example:
FA56 where F is the ID of the transmitting station, A indicates the message category Navigational warning, and 56 is the consecutive message number.
, overseen by IMSO, International Mobile Satellite Organization
are also important elements of the GMDSS. The types of Inmarsat ship earth station terminals recognized by the GMDSS are: Inmarsat B, C and F77. Inmarsat B and F77, an updated version of the now redundant Inmarsat A, provide ship/shore, ship/ship and shore/ship telephone, telex and high-speed data services, including a distress priority telephone and telex service to and from rescue coordination centers. Fleet 77 fully supports the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) and includes advanced features such as emergency call prioritisation. The Inmarsat C provides ship/shore, shore/ship and ship/ship store-and-forward data and email messaging, the capability for sending preformatted distress messages to a rescue coordination center, and the Inmarsat C SafetyNET service. The Inmarsat C SafetyNET service is a satellite-based worldwide maritime safety information broadcast service of high seas weather warnings, NAVAREA navigational warnings, radionavigation warnings, ice reports and warnings generated by the USCG-conducted International Ice Patrol, and other similar information not provided by NAVTEX. SafetyNET works similarly to NAVTEX in areas outside NAVTEX coverage.
Inmarsat C equipment is relatively small and lightweight, and costs much less than an Inmarsat B or F77. Inmarsat B and F77 ship earth stations which require relatively large gyro-stabilized uni directional antennas; the antenna size of the Inmarsat C is much smaller and is omni directional.
Under a cooperative agreement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA), combined meteorological observations and AMVER
reports can now be sent to both the USCG AMVER Center, and NOAA, using an Inmarsat C ship earth station, at no charge. .
SOLAS now requires that Inmarsat C equipment have an integral satellite navigation receiver, or be externally connected to a satellite navigation receiver. That connection will ensure accurate location information to be sent to a rescue coordination center if a distress alert is ever transmitted.
Also the new LRIT long range tracking systems are upgraded via GMDSS Inmarsat C which are also compliant along with inbuilt SSAS, or Ship Security Alert System. SSAS provides a means to covertly transmit a security alert distress message to local authorities in the event of a mutiny, pirate attack, or other hostile action towards the vessel or its crew.
(HF) radiotelephone and radiotelex (narrow-band direct printing) equipment, with calls initiated by digital selective calling (DSC). Worldwide broadcasts of maritime safety information can also made on HF narrow-band direct printing channels.
display. The detection range between these devices and ships, dependent upon the height of the ship's radar mast and the height of the Search and Rescue Locating device, is normally about 15 km (8 nautical miles).
Once detected by radar, the Search and Rescue Locating device will produce a visual and aural indication to the persons in distress.
.
DSC distress alerts, which consist of a preformatted distress message, are used to initiate emergency communications with ships and rescue coordination centers. DSC was intended to eliminate the need for persons on a ship's bridge or on shore to continuously guard radio receivers on voice radio channels, including VHF channel 16 (156.8 MHz) and 2182 kHz
now used for distress, safety and calling. A listening watch aboard GMDSS-equipped ships on 2182 kHz ended on February 1, 1999. In May 2002, IMO decided to postpone cessation of a VHF listening watch aboard ships. That watchkeeping requirement had been scheduled to end on 1 February 2005.
IMO and ITU both require that the DSC-equipped MF/HF and VHF radios be externally connected to a satellite navigation receiver (GPS). That connection will ensure accurate location information is sent to a rescue coordination center if a distress alert is transmitted. The FCC requires that all new VHF and MF/HF maritime radiotelephones type accepted after June 1999 have at least a basic DSC capability.
VHF digital selective calling also has other capabilities beyond those required for the GMDSS. The Coast Guard uses this system to track vessels in Prince William Sound, Alaska, Vessel Traffic Service. IMO and the USCG also plan to require ships carry a Universal Shipborne Automatic Identification System
, which will be DSC-compatible. Countries having a GMDSS A1 Area should be able to identify and track AIS-equipped vessels in its waters without any additional radio equipment. A DSC-equipped radio cannot be interrogated and tracked unless that option was included by the manufacturer, and unless the user configures it to allow tracking.
GMDSS telecommunications equipment should not be reserved for emergency use only. The International Maritime Organization encourages mariners to use GMDSS equipment for routine as well as safety telecommunications.
In addition to equipment listed below, all GMDSS-regulated ships must carry a satellite EPIRB, a NAVTEX receiver (if they travel in any areas served by NAVTEX), an Inmarsat-C SafetyNET receiver (if they travel in any areas not served by NAVTEX), a DSC-equipped VHF radiotelephone, two (if between 300 and less than 500 GRT) or three VHF handhelds (if 500 GRT or more), and two 9 GHz search and rescue radar transponders (SART).
, excluding any A1 or A2 areas.
at the end of the 19th century, ships at sea have relied on Morse code
, invented by Samuel Morse and first used in 1844, for distress and safety telecommunications. The need for ship and coast radio stations to have and use radiotelegraph equipment, and to listen to a common radio frequency for Morse encoded distress calls, was recognized after the sinking of the liner RMS Titanic in the North Atlantic in 1912. The U.S. Congress enacted legislation soon after, requiring U.S. ships to use Morse code radiotelegraph equipment for distress calls. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU), now a United Nations
agency, followed suit for ships of all nations. Morse encoded distress calling has saved thousands of lives since its inception almost a century ago, but its use requires skilled radio operators spending many hours listening to the radio distress frequency. Its range on the medium frequency
(MF) distress band (500 kHz) is limited, and the amount of traffic Morse signals can carry is also limited.
Not all ship-to-shore radio communications were short range. Some radio stations provided long-range radiotelephony services, such as radio telegrams and radio telex calls, on the HF
bands (3-30 MHz) enabling worldwide communications with ships. For example, Portishead Radio
, which was the world's busiest radiotelephony station, provided HF long-range services. In 1974, it had 154 radio operators who handled over 20 million words per year. Such large radiotelephony stations employed large numbers of people and were expensive to operate. By the end of the 1980s, satellite services had started to take an increasingly large share of the market for ship-to-shore communications.
For these reasons, the International Maritime Organization
(IMO), a United Nations agency specializing in safety of shipping and preventing ships from polluting the seas, began looking at ways of improving maritime distress and safety communications. In 1979, a group of experts drafted the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, which called for development of a global search and rescue plan. This group also passed a resolution calling for development by IMO of a Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) to provide the communication support needed to implement the search and rescue plan. This new system, which the world's maritime nations are implementing, is based upon a combination of satellite
and terrestrial radio services, and has changed international distress communications from being primarily ship-to-ship based to ship-to-shore (Rescue Coordination Center) based. It spelled the end of Morse code communications for all but a few users, such as amateur radio operator
s. The GMDSS provides for automatic distress alerting and locating in cases where a radio operator doesn't have time to send an SOS
or MAYDAY
call, and, for the first time, requires ships to receive broadcasts of maritime safety information which could prevent a distress from happening in the first place. In 1988, IMO amended the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS
) Convention, requiring ships subject to it fit GMDSS equipment. Such ships were required to carry NAVTEX and satellite EPIRBs by 1 August 1993, and had to fit all other GMDSS equipment by 1 February 1999. US ships were allowed to fit GMDSS in lieu of Morse telegraphy equipment by the Telecommunications Act of 1996
.
The General Operator’s Certificate is required on SOLAS vessels operating also outside GMDSS Sea Area A1, while a Restricted Operator’s Certificate is needed on SOLAS vessels operated solely within GMDSS Sea Area A1,
Long Range Certificate may be issued, and is required on non-SOLAS vessels operating outside GMDSS Sea Area A1, while a Short Range Certificate is issued for non-SOLAS vessels operating only inside GMDSS Sea Area A1.
Finally there is a Restricted radiotelephone operator's certificate, which is similar to the Short Range Certificate but limited VHR DSC radio operation. Some countries do not consider this adequate for GMDSS qualification.
In the United States
four different GMDSS certificates are issued. A GMDSS Radio Maintainer's License allows a person to maintain, install,and repair GMDSS equipment at sea. A GMDSS Radio Operator's License is necessary for a person to use required GMDSS equipment. The holder of both certificates can be issued one GMDSS Radio Operator/Maintainer License. Finally, the GMDSS Restricted License is available for VHF operations only within 20 nautical miles (37 km) of the coast. To obtain any of these licenses a person must be a U.S. citizen or otherwise eligible for work in the country, be able to communicate in English, and take written examinations approved by the Federal Communications Commission
. Like the amateur radio
examinations, these are given by private, FCC-approved groups. These are generally not the same agencies who administer the ham tests. Written test elements 1 and 7 are required for the Operator license, and elements 1 and 7R for the Restricted Operator. (Passing element 1 also automatically qualifies the applicant for the Marine Radiotelephone Operator Permit, the MROP.)
For the Maintainer license, written exam element 9 must be passed. However, to obtain this certificate an applicant must also hold a General radiotelephone operator license
(GROL), which requires passing commercial written exam elements 1 and 3 (and thus supersedes the MROP). Upon the further passing of optional written exam element 8 the ship radar endorsement will be added to both the GROL and Maintainer licenses. This allows the holder to adjust, maintain, and repair shipboard radar
equipment.
Until March 25, 2008 GMDSS operator and maintainer licenses expired after five years but could be renewed upon payment of a fee. On that date all new certificates were issued valid for the lifetimes of their holders. For those still valid but previously issued with expiration dates, the FCC states:
Any GMDSS Radio Operator's License, Restricted GMDSS Radio Operator's License, GMDSS Radio Maintainer's License, GMDSS Radio Operator/Maintainer License, or Marine Radio Operator Permit that was active, i.e., had not expired, as of March 25, 2008, does not have to be renewed.
Since an older certificate does show an expiration date, for crewmembers sailing internationally it may be worth paying the fee (as of 2010 it was $60) to avoid any confusion with local authorities.
Finally, to actually serve as a GMDSS operator on most commercial vessels the United States Coast Guard
requires additional classroom training and practical experience beyond just holding a license.
GMDSS consists of several systems, some of which are new, but many of which have been in operation for many years. The system is intended to perform the following functions: alerting (including position determination of the unit in distress), search and rescue
Search and rescue
Search and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
coordination, locating (homing), maritime safety information broadcasts, general communications, and bridge-to-bridge communications. Specific radio carriage requirements depend upon the ship's area of operation, rather than its tonnage
Tonnage
Tonnage is a measure of the size or cargo carrying capacity of a ship. The term derives from the taxation paid on tuns or casks of wine, and was later used in reference to the weight of a ship's cargo; however, in modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically refers to a calculation of the volume...
. The system also provides redundant means of distress alerting, and emergency sources of power.
Recreational vessels do not need to comply with GMDSS radio carriage requirements, but will increasingly use the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) VHF radios. Offshore vessels may elect to equip themselves further. Vessels under 300 Gross tonnage
Gross tonnage
Gross tonnage is a unitless index related to a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage...
(GT) are not subject to GMDSS requirements.
Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB)
Cospas-SarsatCospas-Sarsat
Cospas-Sarsat is an international satellite-based search and rescue distress alert detection and information distribution system, established by Canada, France, the United States, and the former Soviet Union in 1979. It is best known as the system that detects and locates emergency beacons...
is an international satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
-based search and rescue system, established by Canada, France, the United States, and Russia. These four countries jointly helped develop the 406 MHz Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon
Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon
Distress radio beacons, also known as emergency beacons, ELT or EPIRB, are tracking transmitters which aid in the detection and location of boats, aircraft, and people in distress. Strictly, they are radiobeacons that interface with worldwide offered service of Cospas-Sarsat, the international...
(EPIRB), an element of the GMDSS designed to operate with Cospas-Sarsat system. These automatic-activating EPIRBs, now required on SOLAS
International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea
The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea is an international maritime safety treaty. The SOLAS Convention in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships.- History :The first version of the...
ships, commercial fishing vessels, and all passenger ships, are designed to transmit to alert rescue coordination centers via the satellite system from anywhere in the world. The original COSPAS / SARSAT system used Polar orbiting satellites but in recent years the system has been expanded to also include 4 geostationary satellites. Newest designs incorporate GPS
Global Positioning System
The Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
receivers to transmit highly accurate positions (within about 20 metres)of the distress position. The original COSPAS / SARSAT satellites could calculate EPIRB position to within about 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) by using Doppler techniques. By the end of 2010 EPIRB manufacturers may be offering AIS
Automatic Identification System
The Automatic Identification System is an automatic tracking system used on ships and by Vessel traffic services for identifying and locating vessels by electronically exchanging data with other nearby ships and AIS Base stations...
(Automatic Identification System) enabled beacons.
The service-ability of these items are checked monthly and annually and have limited battery shelf life between 2 to 5 years using mostly Lithium type batteries. 406 MHz EPIRB's transmit a registration number which is linked to a database of information about the vessel.
NAVTEX
NavtexNavtex
NAVTEX is an international automated medium frequency direct-printing service for delivery of navigational and meteorological warnings and forecasts, as well as urgent marine safety information to ships...
is an international, automated system for instantly distributing maritime safety information (MSI) which includes navigational warnings, weather forecasts and weather warnings, search and rescue notices and similar information to ships. A small, low-cost and self-contained "smart" printing radio receiver is installed on the bridge, or the place from where the ship is navigated, and checks each incoming message to see if it has been received during an earlier transmission, or if it is of a category of no interest to the ship's master. The frequency of transmission of these messages is 518 kHz in English, while 490 kHz is sometime used to broadcast in a local language.
The messages are coded with a header code identified by the using single letters of the alphabet to represent broadcasting stations, type of messages, and followed by two figures indicating the serial number of the message.
For example:
FA56 where F is the ID of the transmitting station, A indicates the message category Navigational warning, and 56 is the consecutive message number.
Inmarsat
Satellite systems operated by the InmarsatInmarsat
Inmarsat plc is a British satellite telecommunications company, offering global, mobile services. It provides telephony and data services to users worldwide, via portable or mobile terminals which communicate to ground stations through eleven geostationary telecommunications satellites...
, overseen by IMSO, International Mobile Satellite Organization
International Mobile Satellite Organization
The International Mobile Satellite Organization is the intergovernmental organization that oversees certain public satellite safety and security communication services provided via the Inmarsat satellites...
are also important elements of the GMDSS. The types of Inmarsat ship earth station terminals recognized by the GMDSS are: Inmarsat B, C and F77. Inmarsat B and F77, an updated version of the now redundant Inmarsat A, provide ship/shore, ship/ship and shore/ship telephone, telex and high-speed data services, including a distress priority telephone and telex service to and from rescue coordination centers. Fleet 77 fully supports the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) and includes advanced features such as emergency call prioritisation. The Inmarsat C provides ship/shore, shore/ship and ship/ship store-and-forward data and email messaging, the capability for sending preformatted distress messages to a rescue coordination center, and the Inmarsat C SafetyNET service. The Inmarsat C SafetyNET service is a satellite-based worldwide maritime safety information broadcast service of high seas weather warnings, NAVAREA navigational warnings, radionavigation warnings, ice reports and warnings generated by the USCG-conducted International Ice Patrol, and other similar information not provided by NAVTEX. SafetyNET works similarly to NAVTEX in areas outside NAVTEX coverage.
Inmarsat C equipment is relatively small and lightweight, and costs much less than an Inmarsat B or F77. Inmarsat B and F77 ship earth stations which require relatively large gyro-stabilized uni directional antennas; the antenna size of the Inmarsat C is much smaller and is omni directional.
Under a cooperative agreement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , pronounced , like "noah", is a scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere...
(NOAA), combined meteorological observations and AMVER
AMVER
AMVER, sponsored by the United States Coast Guard, is a unique, computer-based, free, and voluntary global ship reporting system used worldwide by search and rescue authorities to arrange for assistance to persons in distress at sea...
reports can now be sent to both the USCG AMVER Center, and NOAA, using an Inmarsat C ship earth station, at no charge. .
SOLAS now requires that Inmarsat C equipment have an integral satellite navigation receiver, or be externally connected to a satellite navigation receiver. That connection will ensure accurate location information to be sent to a rescue coordination center if a distress alert is ever transmitted.
Also the new LRIT long range tracking systems are upgraded via GMDSS Inmarsat C which are also compliant along with inbuilt SSAS, or Ship Security Alert System. SSAS provides a means to covertly transmit a security alert distress message to local authorities in the event of a mutiny, pirate attack, or other hostile action towards the vessel or its crew.
High Frequency
A GMDSS system may include High FrequencyHigh frequency
High frequency radio frequencies are between 3 and 30 MHz. Also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decameters . Frequencies immediately below HF are denoted Medium-frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Very high frequency...
(HF) radiotelephone and radiotelex (narrow-band direct printing) equipment, with calls initiated by digital selective calling (DSC). Worldwide broadcasts of maritime safety information can also made on HF narrow-band direct printing channels.
Search and Rescue Locating device
The GMDSS installation on ships include one (two on vessels over 500 GT) Search and Rescue Locating device(s) called Search and Rescue Radar Transponders (SART) which are used to locate survival craft or distressed vessels by creating a series of twelve dots on a rescuing ship's 3 cm radarRadar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
display. The detection range between these devices and ships, dependent upon the height of the ship's radar mast and the height of the Search and Rescue Locating device, is normally about 15 km (8 nautical miles).
Once detected by radar, the Search and Rescue Locating device will produce a visual and aural indication to the persons in distress.
Digital Selective Calling
The IMO also introduced Digital Selective Calling (DSC) on MF, HF and VHF maritime radios as part of the GMDSS system. DSC is primarily intended to initiate ship-to-ship, ship-to-shore and shore-to-ship radiotelephone and MF/HF radiotelex calls. DSC calls can also be made to individual stations, groups of stations, or "all stations" in one's radio range. Each DSC-equipped ship, shore station and group is assigned a unique 9-digit Maritime Mobile Service IdentityMaritime Mobile Service Identity
A Maritime Mobile Service Identity is a series of nine digits which are sent in digital form over a radio frequency channel in order to uniquely identify ship stations, ship earth stations, coast stations, coast earth stations, and group calls...
.
DSC distress alerts, which consist of a preformatted distress message, are used to initiate emergency communications with ships and rescue coordination centers. DSC was intended to eliminate the need for persons on a ship's bridge or on shore to continuously guard radio receivers on voice radio channels, including VHF channel 16 (156.8 MHz) and 2182 kHz
2182 kHz
The radio frequency of 2182 kHz is the international calling and distress frequency for maritime radiotelephone communications on the marine MF bands.- Transmission modes :...
now used for distress, safety and calling. A listening watch aboard GMDSS-equipped ships on 2182 kHz ended on February 1, 1999. In May 2002, IMO decided to postpone cessation of a VHF listening watch aboard ships. That watchkeeping requirement had been scheduled to end on 1 February 2005.
IMO and ITU both require that the DSC-equipped MF/HF and VHF radios be externally connected to a satellite navigation receiver (GPS). That connection will ensure accurate location information is sent to a rescue coordination center if a distress alert is transmitted. The FCC requires that all new VHF and MF/HF maritime radiotelephones type accepted after June 1999 have at least a basic DSC capability.
VHF digital selective calling also has other capabilities beyond those required for the GMDSS. The Coast Guard uses this system to track vessels in Prince William Sound, Alaska, Vessel Traffic Service. IMO and the USCG also plan to require ships carry a Universal Shipborne Automatic Identification System
Automatic Identification System
The Automatic Identification System is an automatic tracking system used on ships and by Vessel traffic services for identifying and locating vessels by electronically exchanging data with other nearby ships and AIS Base stations...
, which will be DSC-compatible. Countries having a GMDSS A1 Area should be able to identify and track AIS-equipped vessels in its waters without any additional radio equipment. A DSC-equipped radio cannot be interrogated and tracked unless that option was included by the manufacturer, and unless the user configures it to allow tracking.
GMDSS telecommunications equipment should not be reserved for emergency use only. The International Maritime Organization encourages mariners to use GMDSS equipment for routine as well as safety telecommunications.
GMDSS sea areas
GMDSS sea areas serve two purposes: to describe areas where GMDSS services are available, and to define what radio equipment GMDSS ships must carry (carriage requirements). Prior to the GMDSS, the number and type of radio safety equipment ships had to carry depended upon its tonnage. With GMDSS, the number and type of radio safety equipment ships have to carry depends upon the GMDSS areas in which they travel.In addition to equipment listed below, all GMDSS-regulated ships must carry a satellite EPIRB, a NAVTEX receiver (if they travel in any areas served by NAVTEX), an Inmarsat-C SafetyNET receiver (if they travel in any areas not served by NAVTEX), a DSC-equipped VHF radiotelephone, two (if between 300 and less than 500 GRT) or three VHF handhelds (if 500 GRT or more), and two 9 GHz search and rescue radar transponders (SART).
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 (55.6 km) to 40 nautical miles (74.1 km) from the Coast Station.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 (333.4 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 (740.8 km) offshore during night time...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 guarantee their system will work between 70 South and 70 North though it will often work to 76 degrees South or North.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 latitudeLatitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
, excluding any A1 or A2 areas.
GMDSS radio equipment required for U.S. coastal voyages
Presently, until an A1 or A2 Sea Area is established, GMDSS-mandated ships operating off the U.S. coast must fit to Sea Areas A3 (or A4) regardless of where they operate. U.S. ships whose voyage allows them to always remain within VHF channel 16 coverage of U.S. Coast Guard stations may apply to the Federal Communications Commission for an individual waiver to fit to Sea Area A1 requirements. Similarly, those who remain within 2182 kHz coverage of U.S. Coast Guard stations may apply for a waiver to fit to Sea Area A2 requirements.History
Since the invention of radioInvention Of Radio
Within the history of radio, several people were involved in the invention of radio and there were many key inventions in what became the modern systems of wireless. Radio development began as "wireless telegraphy"...
at the end of the 19th century, ships at sea have relied on Morse code
Morse code
Morse code is a method of transmitting textual information as a series of on-off tones, lights, or clicks that can be directly understood by a skilled listener or observer without special equipment...
, invented by Samuel Morse and first used in 1844, for distress and safety telecommunications. The need for ship and coast radio stations to have and use radiotelegraph equipment, and to listen to a common radio frequency for Morse encoded distress calls, was recognized after the sinking of the liner RMS Titanic in the North Atlantic in 1912. The U.S. Congress enacted legislation soon after, requiring U.S. ships to use Morse code radiotelegraph equipment for distress calls. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU), now a United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
agency, followed suit for ships of all nations. Morse encoded distress calling has saved thousands of lives since its inception almost a century ago, but its use requires skilled radio operators spending many hours listening to the radio distress frequency. Its range on the medium frequency
Medium frequency
Medium frequency refers to radio frequencies in the range of 300 kHz to 3 MHz. Part of this band is the medium wave AM broadcast band. The MF band is also known as the hectometer band or hectometer wave as the wavelengths range from ten down to one hectometers...
(MF) distress band (500 kHz) is limited, and the amount of traffic Morse signals can carry is also limited.
Not all ship-to-shore radio communications were short range. Some radio stations provided long-range radiotelephony services, such as radio telegrams and radio telex calls, on the HF
High frequency
High frequency radio frequencies are between 3 and 30 MHz. Also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decameters . Frequencies immediately below HF are denoted Medium-frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Very high frequency...
bands (3-30 MHz) enabling worldwide communications with ships. For example, Portishead Radio
Portishead Radio
Portishead Radio was a radio station in England that provided worldwide maritime communications and long-range aeronautical communications from 1928 until 2000. It was the world's largest and busiest radiotelephony station...
, which was the world's busiest radiotelephony station, provided HF long-range services. In 1974, it had 154 radio operators who handled over 20 million words per year. Such large radiotelephony stations employed large numbers of people and were expensive to operate. By the end of the 1980s, satellite services had started to take an increasingly large share of the market for ship-to-shore communications.
For these reasons, the International Maritime Organization
International Maritime Organization
The International Maritime Organization , formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization , was established in Geneva in 1948, and came into force ten years later, meeting for the first time in 1959...
(IMO), a United Nations agency specializing in safety of shipping and preventing ships from polluting the seas, began looking at ways of improving maritime distress and safety communications. In 1979, a group of experts drafted the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, which called for development of a global search and rescue plan. This group also passed a resolution calling for development by IMO of a Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) to provide the communication support needed to implement the search and rescue plan. This new system, which the world's maritime nations are implementing, is based upon a combination of satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
and terrestrial radio services, and has changed international distress communications from being primarily ship-to-ship based to ship-to-shore (Rescue Coordination Center) based. It spelled the end of Morse code communications for all but a few users, such as amateur radio operator
Amateur radio operator
An amateur radio operator is an individual who typically uses equipment at an amateur radio station to engage in two-way personal communications with other similar individuals on radio frequencies assigned to the amateur radio service. Amateur radio operators have been granted an amateur radio...
s. The GMDSS provides for automatic distress alerting and locating in cases where a radio operator doesn't have time to send an SOS
SOS
SOS is the commonly used description for the international Morse code distress signal...
or MAYDAY
Mayday (distress signal)
Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice procedure radio communications. It derives from the French venez m'aider, meaning "come help me"....
call, and, for the first time, requires ships to receive broadcasts of maritime safety information which could prevent a distress from happening in the first place. In 1988, IMO amended the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS
International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea
The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea is an international maritime safety treaty. The SOLAS Convention in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships.- History :The first version of the...
) Convention, requiring ships subject to it fit GMDSS equipment. Such ships were required to carry NAVTEX and satellite EPIRBs by 1 August 1993, and had to fit all other GMDSS equipment by 1 February 1999. US ships were allowed to fit GMDSS in lieu of Morse telegraphy equipment by the Telecommunications Act of 1996
Telecommunications Act of 1996
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was the first major overhaul of United States telecommunications law in nearly 62 years, amending the Communications Act of 1934. This Act, signed by President Bill Clinton, was a major stepping stone towards the future of telecommunications, since this was the...
.
Licensing of operators
National maritime authorities may issue various classes of licenses.The General Operator’s Certificate is required on SOLAS vessels operating also outside GMDSS Sea Area A1, while a Restricted Operator’s Certificate is needed on SOLAS vessels operated solely within GMDSS Sea Area A1,
Long Range Certificate may be issued, and is required on non-SOLAS vessels operating outside GMDSS Sea Area A1, while a Short Range Certificate is issued for non-SOLAS vessels operating only inside GMDSS Sea Area A1.
Finally there is a Restricted radiotelephone operator's certificate, which is similar to the Short Range Certificate but limited VHR DSC radio operation. Some countries do not consider this adequate for GMDSS qualification.
In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
four different GMDSS certificates are issued. A GMDSS Radio Maintainer's License allows a person to maintain, install,and repair GMDSS equipment at sea. A GMDSS Radio Operator's License is necessary for a person to use required GMDSS equipment. The holder of both certificates can be issued one GMDSS Radio Operator/Maintainer License. Finally, the GMDSS Restricted License is available for VHF operations only within 20 nautical miles (37 km) of the coast. To obtain any of these licenses a person must be a U.S. citizen or otherwise eligible for work in the country, be able to communicate in English, and take written examinations approved by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
. Like the amateur radio
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
examinations, these are given by private, FCC-approved groups. These are generally not the same agencies who administer the ham tests. Written test elements 1 and 7 are required for the Operator license, and elements 1 and 7R for the Restricted Operator. (Passing element 1 also automatically qualifies the applicant for the Marine Radiotelephone Operator Permit, the MROP.)
For the Maintainer license, written exam element 9 must be passed. However, to obtain this certificate an applicant must also hold a General radiotelephone operator license
General radiotelephone operator license
The General Radiotelephone Operator License is a United States commercial license, as opposed to an amateur radio license. It allows the holder to operate, maintain or install certain classes of United States licensed radio and television transmitters under the authority of the Federal...
(GROL), which requires passing commercial written exam elements 1 and 3 (and thus supersedes the MROP). Upon the further passing of optional written exam element 8 the ship radar endorsement will be added to both the GROL and Maintainer licenses. This allows the holder to adjust, maintain, and repair shipboard radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
equipment.
Until March 25, 2008 GMDSS operator and maintainer licenses expired after five years but could be renewed upon payment of a fee. On that date all new certificates were issued valid for the lifetimes of their holders. For those still valid but previously issued with expiration dates, the FCC states:
Any GMDSS Radio Operator's License, Restricted GMDSS Radio Operator's License, GMDSS Radio Maintainer's License, GMDSS Radio Operator/Maintainer License, or Marine Radio Operator Permit that was active, i.e., had not expired, as of March 25, 2008, does not have to be renewed.
Since an older certificate does show an expiration date, for crewmembers sailing internationally it may be worth paying the fee (as of 2010 it was $60) to avoid any confusion with local authorities.
Finally, to actually serve as a GMDSS operator on most commercial vessels the United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
requires additional classroom training and practical experience beyond just holding a license.
Source
- GMDSS Home Page
- http://www.gmdss.com.au/
External links
- COSPAS-SARSAT system home page
- Search And Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking (SARSAT)
- FCC - Commercial Operator Licenses: Examinations Federal Communications CommissionFederal Communications CommissionThe Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) - FCC - GMDSS Radio Maintainer's License (DM) FCC
- FCC - GMDSS Radio Operator's License (DO) FCC
- FCC - Ship Radar Endorsement FCC
- FCC - Commercial Operator Licenses: Examination Question Pools FCC
- GMDSS Ship Inspection Checklist FCC
- GMDSS Test Equipment MF/HF/VHF/DSC/NAVTEX Test Set
- GMDSS Training Simulators
- GMDSS Training Simulators -VOX MARIS-