What is the purpose of orange smoke signals specifically, as opposed to red flares?

A. Orange smoke signals are only effective at night, the same as flares

B. Orange smoke is primarily a daytime signal — the dense, brightly coloured smoke is highly visible against most sea and sky backgrounds during daylight, whereas red flares (light-based) are generally most effective and visually striking at night or in low light

C. Orange smoke and red flares serve identical purposes and can be used interchangeably regardless of time of day

D. Orange smoke is purely decorative and has no recognised distress signalling function

A. A handheld torch used only for close-range signalling to nearby vessels

B. A backup liferaft repair kit component unrelated to communication

C. A type of personal flotation device with no signalling capability at all

D. Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon — once activated (manually or automatically by water immersion), it transmits a distress signal with the vessel's identity and position via satellite to search and rescue authorities, continuing to transmit for an extended period to aid location

A. A PLB is only used for testing equipment ashore, never carried during an actual emergency

B. An EPIRB is typically registered to the vessel and often mounted/stowed for the whole crew, while a PLB is a smaller, individually registered device that a single person can carry on their body — useful if separated from the main group or liferaft

C. EPIRBs and PLBs are functionally and legally identical, with the only difference being colour

D. A PLB has no satellite connectivity and only works at very short range