My guess is that GPS has removed the need for most of these buoys. When any boat can tell it’s location within a few meters, and satellite maps are also easily available, avoiding shoals and reefs should be possible without buoys.
The problem is that they’re removing analogue redundancies. Sure gps can tell them where they are and where to go, but what if that computer breaks down at sea, or something happens to the service and they can get an accurate update in a meaningful amount of time? When things break, we can always fall back on the redundancy in place, but when those are removed, then sailors are SOL when something stops working.
My guess is that GPS has removed the need for most of these buoys. When any boat can tell it’s location within a few meters, and satellite maps are also easily available, avoiding shoals and reefs should be possible without buoys.
The problem is that they’re removing analogue redundancies. Sure gps can tell them where they are and where to go, but what if that computer breaks down at sea, or something happens to the service and they can get an accurate update in a meaningful amount of time? When things break, we can always fall back on the redundancy in place, but when those are removed, then sailors are SOL when something stops working.
Buy a gold Trump Sextant to own the libs!